Gensokyo Tea Time
by permafrost13
Summary: After engaging in a deal with a certain youkai, strange things started to happen to the light music club, eventually leading them to explore a never-before-seen world.
1. Gaps and Sweets

**/Notes/**

First of all, please put my head on a stake for making this fic in the first place. After making MWB (K-On! x MGS: PW - although not yet done with it), I was thinking...why not a touhou crossover? (Curse my touhou break and my absurd ideas) This one would at least have a plot (kinda weird at first but will soon be polished as it progress). I still don't know if this is going to be interesting for you but...

**Ta-dan~**

Enjoy! *continues pounding mochi*

**/Disclaimer/**: I don't own Touhou Project and K-On! All rights to their respective owners.

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: Gaps and Sweets<strong>

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><p>The day was just beginning to the people in the neighborhood as the sun started to bathe the whole scenery with its warmth. Most people started to get ready for another day of work and school. Well, except for this girl whose eyes still shut, not wanting to wake up anytime soon in her sleep. The sunlight wanting to pass through the windows was intercepted by the window shades, rather giving the interior of the room a warm glow and the birds outside did their usual chirping.<p>

She didn't pay notice to them as she shifted her body to the other side. Settling in a more comfortable position, she gave off a small smile while hugging her guitar. Her alarm clock, which was now knocked off from its place after a pillow was impulsively thrown against it, already went off around five minutes ago. She covered herself entirely with her comfy sheet after feeling that it was already bright. She enjoyed some more minutes of peace until someone knocked at her room for three consecutive times. She ignored it for a few seconds then another set of knocks was heard, making her utter a rather drowsy reply to the person who was eagerly waiting outside the room.

"Just... Five more minutes... Ui..."

"Onee-chan, breakfast's ready!" Her sister said with a little more volume to her voice.

"It's Sunday today, right?"

"No, it's not. Please get up, okay?"

The last resort would be seeing her younger sister waking her up to prevent another day of being late to school. This almost happened every day, and thankfully, her sister wouldn't get tired of it and never would. She had the habit of setting the alarm clock of her sister an hour before school starts, but to no avail. She would go upstairs anyways and check on her sister if she was already awake. You could say that today was no different.

Ui Hirasawa opened the door, knowing that her sister resumed back to sleep mode. She slowly crept towards the bed and uncovered the sheet on her sister. She just let out a sigh as she saw her sister cuddling the guitar as if it was a stuffed animal.

"Oh... Good Morning, Ui~!" The girl greeted with a beam on her face, like the same look she always give to everyone. Her sister crossed her arms and sighed.

"Good Morning too, Onee-chan. We're going to be late if you don't hurry..."

"...What's for today's breakfast?"

"Oh, the usual. Get yourself ready first," Ui replied and gave a wink before she went out of the room.

"Okay~ I won't take long!"

Yui Hirasawa was a senior student in Sakuragaoka high school. Desite of being an airhead and she was not that much special when it comes to academics and other school stuffs, she could get outstanding results if she would had the motivation to study. Even before entering high school, she did nothing in particular. She was just waiting for another day to come, lazing around their house as if life itself was problem-free. She only then found a new purpose in her life as she joined the light music club. You could easily spot a Yui Hirasawa from a mile away as she herself radiate this warm and carefree nature of hers.

This particular high school girl never forgot to bring her beloved guitar. She's quite a bit pessimist without it on her side, thinking that her it might suffer untreatable damage and could end up days of depression and sleepless nights knowing that it was her responsibility to take care of the guitar. She cared for the instrument so much that she did things together with it most of the time, from eating breakfast to watching television to sleeping. She also never let a day pass without even holding or playing some tune or two from her instrument.

After stretching a little, she wore her uniform and fixed her hair in its usual style before going out of the room and went downstairs with her precious guitar and schoolbag while humming a song that her band usually played during practice. She was a member of the light music club in their school and already done some live performances on stage. Some students even wondered how the club can pull off amazing performances when they hardly practice at all. Everything she did with the other club members was fun and memorable for her. Not to mention that they did training camps during summer break, eat and drink exquisite food and all other stuff, but never called it a day without having a cup of tea together, which turned out to be the club's trademark and their band's name was named after their usual relaxing activity.

Ui always made their breakfasts special for her sister. She had to wake up an hour or two earlier than her older sister, depending on the chores needed to be done. Since they were the only ones together in the house, she had to make an extra effort to everything, from cleaning the house to cooking meals for both of them. For a strange reason, she didn't mind about asking for help from her sister and will serve her with the best she could, often getting trouble for herself. Yui's friends find it hard at first that the more mature and responsible one had to be the younger one but Ui would often sheepishly defend the strong points of her beloved sister.

The guitarist sat across her sister who was already done preparing the food on the table. They gave thanks to the food they and began eating. As expected, Yui finished her meal as soon as Ui reached halfway on her own. That alone would tell you that she liked to eat and better prepare considerable amount of money if you wanted to treat her. She left the table to go upstairs maybe to fetch something that she forgot or do something else. After Ui cleaned up the kitchen and ready to go, she called her sister as she waited at the door.

They didn't need to worry much about the time since it was half an hour early before school starts and considering that their school could be easily reached by just walking from their home. She barely noticed that her sister stumbled on the stairs. Fortunately, Yui regained her balance.

Ui sighed her anxiety out of her. She knew things like that happened most of the time on her clumsy sister but didn't blame her for such.

"I didn't have much sleep," Yui muttered to herself while gazing at the clear sky.

Ui couldn't help to be concerned at her. They were sisters after all. "Is there something wrong?"

"I have this feeling that something bad might happen again..."

"About your snacks getting stolen inside the music room?"

"Yes, and I'm number one in their suspect list. Mugi-chan just giggles about it. Those sweets were her sweets and she just brought in extra ones for us to save the problem. I'm kinda confused myself how could those happen."

"Don't worry, I'm sure those things would work out eventually."

"You think so?"

Ui jested as she nudged the side of her sister with an elbow, "That's not so like you. Where's the carefree sister of mine?"

"Ha! It's not like me alright. Blame the author for this."

The younger brunette could only raise an eyebrow in thought, her mouth slightly open. "The _what_?"

"Nothing." Yui smiled blithely. "Oh...what's for dinner tonight?"

"Now that's more like you!" Ui said as her sister giggled in response.

The two gave each other a nod before they continued walking.

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><p>In class, Yui's mind would usually fly off somewhere far away from the seemingly endless discussion. She would think of something nice while staring outside. Besides, she was seated in the back row near the window and the teacher wouldn't probably notice that she was already dozing off or daydreaming about cotton candy heaven or the invasion of the cake celestials. Most of the things talked about in class seemed uninteresting; more reason for her to think about something else.<p>

After school, she finally packed her things and went straight to the music room as she anticipates the sweets they will have later. On her way to the café and music room, a teacher of hers asked her a favor of bringing some papers to the student council president, Manabe Nodoka. She served as Yui's second official caretaker and sometimes her personal tutor in their lessons.

Yui wanted to protest, but it would only take precious time of hers. Why do some teachers let their students do their dirty work? Anyways, she heavily marched to the room of her new objective.

Upon arriving to the student council room, Yui greeted her as of custom and handed over the requested papers to the president who gave her a thankful smile. Luckily for her, Nodoka seemed to be very persistent like her sister and didn't have any regrets whatsoever in being part of Yui's life. After all, patience was all you need when you had a friend like Yui. After waving a goodbye to her friend, the lead guitarist took off to the music room. Unless, there would be another person who would give her an errand, she would be there in a good three minutes or less.

She knew that the same incident for two days might happen today as well. She decided to stay vigilant on what could happen now. The moment she reached the door of the club room, she could hear bickering inside. Something that she already feared that might occur. She slowly opened the door. The room's occupants shifted their attention to her as if they were waiting for her arrival. Yui saw their anxious faces as they resumed finding an apparently missing thing that would be of course... edible.

"It's about time you showed up!" Tainaka Ritsu, the light music club's self-proclaimed president and drummer, said. She gave Yui a glance of contempt and nervousness. The previous days made her quite suspicious on Yui since food was involved in those incidents.

"Uhm... Did I miss anything?" Yui asked after she closed the door and placed her bag and guitar at the side. She got more confused in the tension engulfing the whole music room.

"Yui-senpai? The cake that Tsumugi bought was gone!" Nakano Azusa, the pigtailed guitarist and the only junior student in their club, cried in panic as she checked the shelves containing most of their food supply.

"T-The cake? The WHOLE cake?" The brunette exclaimed as her mind couldn't accept what she heard just now. One could steal a bite or piece but today was a whole cake which no human could have ever done, at least, in her own perspective.

"We're so dead if she found this out," Ritsu said nervously as she dipped her face to her hands. She stared at Yui like she was going to eat her alive. "My mind tells me that you might know something about this, Yui..."

"Huh? Whatever is going on in your mind, I won't ever steal something!" Yui answered with a pout as she grasped what Ritsu was implying.

"Even if the cake is said to grant immortality?"

Azusa shook her head slowly on the absurdity of the question. In all honesty though, she was impressed in the drummer's somewhat creative mind. "You and your fantasies senpai..."

"If the cake doesn't taste good or went pass the expiration date or grew stuff like mold on it, I won't touch it," replied the lead guitarist. She glanced around then she only then noticed that Tsumugi was not inside the room. "Oh, she's not here yet?"

What Yui said only added panic to the others.

"Don't think of that now, we should find that cake instead!" Ritsu shouted frantically as she began to search again.

"It was just here, right? How could someone get into so much trouble just to get a cake?" Akiyama Mio, the ever-popular bassist and vocalist of the club, pondered. She knew that panicking won't do good and thought of some plausible explanations. After all, this was not the first. These incidents often led to ghost stories by Ritsu who would earn a good strike and a lump on the head from her.

"Yeah, Tsumugi's freaking cake...gone completely. We got to think of a damn good excuse for now!"

"How about we tell her that Sawa-chan took the cake?" asked Ritsu as soon as she thought of the idea. "Heh. She'll pay for scolding me the other day..."

"Wait. She'll tear our limbs apart if we blame her!" Azusa objected as sweat trickled on her face. "I...I don't like that idea..."

"Huh? Who do you think is more scarier? Sawa-chan or Mugi?"

"Uhm..." Azusa couldn't answer, whether the hesitation was coming from fear or the fact that the two were both good friends. Truly, their club adviser was scary as she would release her 'true form' and unleash her fury to the poor girls. Tsumugi, however, was the most benevolent one of all and always maintained her soothing atmosphere around her. Doing something bad against the young mistress of the Kotobuki family would be the greatest mistake in anyone's life. Azusa once thought that calamities might happen if someone would plot a scheme to the keyboardist. Maybe on a smaller scale, the offender would get struck by lightning or swallowed by a fissure alive.

"Giving lies won't do good either," Mio said worriedly. True enough, she was the conscience of the club aside from Azusa but sometimes being outnumbered in decisions. "As if Mugi would buy that obvious lie."

"So, what do we need to do now?" asked Ritsu once more. "If we didn't come up with a compromise soon..."

"Hello, everyone!" A blonde girl greeted them, cutting off Ritsu. They were too troubled about the cake that they didn't even noticed that the music club's keyboardist already got inside and stared at them for a full minute to apprehend the current situation at hand. They were literally frozen in their place as if the time itself was intentionally stopped by the girl. Ritsu whispered something incomprehensible to herself, cursing about the keyboardist's bad timing as Azusa held her breath as hard as it could get.

"What's with those faces?" Kotobuki Tsumugi asked as she gave them a curious expression, carrying a decorated box of silver and peach stripes.

"Err...you know, uh...where have you been? We're about to...yeah, practice!" Ritsu stuttered as she dashed towards the drumset with her drumsticks in her hands. Mio stared at the club president in the eye as if about to give Ritsu a purging smash to the head with her bass guitar to cleanse her friend's soul.

"Liar..." The bassist whispered to herself. If things wouldn't end well, she might go for her last resort - a good beating for the drummer.

"Don't you want to have tea and cake first?" Tsumugi asked her friends as she placed a box seemingly fresh straight from the bakery on the middle of the table before going to the mini-kitchen corner they arranged themselves for preparing food.

"W-We just had some biscuits and tea earlier, Mugi-senpai," informed the rhythm guitarist, intentionally supporting Ritsu as she went to her position with her own guitar at the ready.

Tsumugi blinked with mouth slightly open. Her lips formed a smile afterwards.

"Oh, everyone seemed to be so eager to practice today!" She said happily as she finished brewing tea and went back to the table and placed a plate full of macaroons and served each of their respective cups. The others were watching her every action, hoping that she didn't remember the previous cake she bought in the morning. Tsumugi opened the box and revealed a large vanilla and chocolate flavored cake with cherries as a finishing touch.

"This one's freshly baked when I bought it."

"Mugi, that looks really good," said Mio as she got a better look of the cake. "I bet it's a tad more expensive than the usual."

"You bought another cake?" Ritsu asked in almost a shouting voice and dropping her drumsticks in her hand in disbelief.

"Wow. You bought another cake?" Yui followed, eyes shining in delight.

"Hm? Is there something wrong with that?" Tsumugi asked innocently as she sliced the cake in equal portions. She seemed quite oblivious on what was making her friends quite flustered.

"I...I mean, well...that's so kind of you," Ritsu mumbled reluctantly, her chest feeling lighter than before.

They started eating as if nothing happened earlier. Ritsu and the others just assumed that they were too focused on that cake and they didn't notice about another spare one. It was better to think that way than to worry more about the lost cake or their blonde friend would noticed and probably would unleash her wrath to them. After some few good minutes, they finally settled down and instead enjoy their relaxing tea time. Tsumugi now distributed the slices of cake to each of them while Yui saw something, though the whole process happened very fast which made her jump on her seat with a finger pointed to the plate full of macaroons.

"What on earth is that?"

"Huh? What is it, senpai?" Azusa asked as she noticed Yui's flustered reaction.

"S-Someone snatched a macaroon from the plate!"

Ritsu quickly grabbed the plate near Tsumugi and started to count the macaroons on it. "Eh? What the...? You're right! One piece short! Now who the hell took that?"

"You actually counted all of them?" Mio asked with a raised eyebrow, slightly impressed.

"You can never be to sure to everything!"

"There it is again!"

"Where?" The rest said in unison as their eyes followed the direction where Yui was pointing. They saw only but air itself and nothing more. Ritsu just sighed and almost automatically, a fist landed on Yui's head, thinking that they actually fell into a trick made by the club's carefree guitarist.

"Is this some kind of prank? Don't tell me you just wanted to have an extra for your share today."

"Believe me! I'm not lying!"

"My cake! It's gone!" Azusa exclaimed as if she just saw the impossible. "M-My cake..."

Everyone's faces turned white in horror as said cake completely vanished, along with the plate and the fork.

"What the hell?" Ritsu blurted out.

"T-This is..." Mio was now shuddering in her own thoughts. "T-The club room's hunted?"

Tsumugi just smiled before speaking, "I don't think that's the case, Mio-chan. It could be something else."

"H-How can you say that with that face of yours?"

"I doubt that too, Mio-senpai..."

"Now, Yui. Explain what the hell's happening here!" Ritsu demanded with a slam on the table.

"It's not me, I swear! I saw something like a hole that appeared in thin air some time ago! It has two ribbons fastened on both ends and suddenly, a hand went out and grabbed one of the macaroons! It's like someone is inside of that...opening...or gap," She firmly defended as a bead of sweat went down on her face. Her friends stared at her in disbelief. She didn't know how to explain how did it happen but surely, she didn't take it. Besides, she was no magician that could take something without the rest noticing. Now, she wondered herself why she was the only person in the room who saw such things as that. Before things would get out of hand, Tsumugi gave another slice to the enraged Azusa, who eventually calmed down as she received the replacement.

"Don't worry, there's still a lot of slices left for everyone," Tsumugi reminded to everyone as she took a sip of tea. Her idea quickly extinguished the pressure forming up and they continued eating the snacks and driking tea.

"S-Seriously...I think you would kill someone just with those sweets, Ritsu..." Mio said as she calmed herself with a sip of warm tea.

Ritsu leaned on her chair comfortably as she held her tea cup. "If not for the fact that these sweets that we eat are expensive and bought by Mugi."

"Mugi-senpai? What made you buy this large cake anyway?" Azusa asked before she placed a piece of the cake in her mouth.

"Actually, nothing in particular. I just feel like it..."

"And you seemed not to mind the cost, senpai..."

"We rarely had this kind of cakes since the start of this year, right?"

Yui said nothing at that moment. She thought that she might be imagining things but whoever who took the cookie was an expert in this kind of job or maybe had this ominous power that could do something like she witnessed earlier. If this continues, it would be bad for her part as well. Sets of eyes were watching her every move during their tea time and continue to be a subject of false claims when something might disappear again. The day ended for the light music club without even touching their instrument. This was to be considered normal in the perspective of other students in their school. You could only see or hear them practicing seriously when their performance was around the corner. After cleaning up the club room and reaching the school gate, they finally parted ways as each of them had individual errands to do.

Yui Hirasawa was still in thought about the things she saw earlier while she walked back to her home. Because of those disappearances, she became the center of all accusations for the last two days in the club room for anything edible that went missing without even a trace. A thought also crossed her mind that the culprit might be someone far from just being human. No one could pull a trick that a hand would appear anywhere and snatch your food when you're doing anything else. Knowing that the equal distribution of sweets per person inside the club room was feared to be altered and her share of food was about to be decreased, she couldn't let this one unnoticed. Even a small percent of loss was a big matter for the likes of her. Anything for Tsumugi Kotobuki's sweets, that is.

_I won't lose to that hand-stealing cake! It's either all of the cakes in this world will get stolen or that thing will fall first before that nightmare would happen!_

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><p>After their club activities the next day, all of them were packing up except Yui who was nowhere to be found. After the last period, they saw Yui immediately dashed out of the classroom for an unknown reason. They supposed that it was an emergency she needs to tend with or probably, she just felt going home early. The club president stated that there was no point practicing without their lead guitarist, they just had tea time then called it a day earlier than the usual. Mio thought that it was just another excuse from Ritsu to unwind. Unexpectedly, they met the carefree guitarist in the hallway, exhausted and carrying a white and red box with a ribbon. She seemed to ran to the place where she got the box then returned here without any chance of a break at all.<p>

"Oh, Yui. What's with the hurry?" Mio asked.

"W-Where...the...key...music room?" She said as she tried to catch her breath.

"Huh? The key is with Sawa-chan now," Ritsu told the other brunette. "What are you going to do in the club room anyway?"

"I bought this, see?" said Yui as she brought the box up. "Well...It's nothing important really. I also need to fetch some of my things there."

Azusa went closer to inspect the box. "A cake? What is it for?"

"Yup!" Yui answered with a nod.

_Wait...I wasn't suppose to say this...I hope they don't get too suspicious._

"Just clean the club room if you're going to eat there, okay?"

"~Thanks!" The guitarist said as she continued her way to the faculty room to get the music room key. She knew that it was the perfect time to initiate her simple 'plan'.

"What's with her? We better ask her tomorrow about that."

The group continued to walk as they talked about a new horror film going to be shown that weekend. When it came to those things, Mio just simply avoid them but would sometimes after getting teased by Ritsu. They moved except for Tsumugi who was looking above as if she could see the music room, assessing the same quaint feeling she sensed in the other days. She was smiling now as she was anticipating this to happen.

"Mugi-senpai, what's wrong?" Azusa called the keyboardist who was spacing out.

"N-Nothing," said Tsumugi as she gave her friend an eerie smile. "Let's move on..."

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><p>Upon getting the key from their club adviser, Yamanaka Sawako, she quickly went upstairs without another word. The teacher was intrigued at first but didn't forced Yui for too long on knowing what her student wanted to do in the club room considering the time. After all, the club room was considered her haven thanks to her students, especially Tsumugi who constantly bring those delicious desserts. The only place of her relaxation, very far away from stress and work and delicious tea and sweets as bonus for staying there. Today was an unlucky one for her since she was occupied with a lot things which didn't gave her a chance to visit the music club. She reluctantly continued her work after giving the keys to her student, mumbling curses about giving her an enormous load of work for that week.<p>

The moment Yui reached the club room, she excitingly opened up the box and placed the strawberry shortcake on the table and patiently waited for something to happen. She wasn't that sure if the cake would actually disappear in front of her eyes but it was worth trying though. She suddenly received a text message from Azusa:

_Yui-senpai, please don't forget to lock the door before you go._

_Oh, if you're going to eat the cake you bought, please clean up the table, okay?_

She just nodded and returned her eyes to the cake. The next thing she saw was simply inconceivable. The cake was gone on the table. The cake was gone in a flash. The cake vanished in such small period of time of checking her cell phone that she wanted to throw the table through the window. Unfortunately, that was the last straw which made her burst out in frustration.

"Hey! Don't you dare hide yourself! I know you're around here!"

"I see that you finally acknowledged my presence. You're quite a perceptive one, dear. I guess there's no point hiding now."

A young woman somehow not that far from her age emerged from a tear in space that appeared out of nowhere which Yui quickly recognized; the same one she saw that was used as an effective way to grab food. She was wearing a peculiar and elaborate set of clothes Yui had never seen before and implying that she was a very important person where she came from or she just simply like sophisticated clothes. The strange woman was wearing a combination of white, pink and lavender dress, a fancy mob cap fitted with a red ribbon and she was carrying a large, stylish parasol in her hand. From those golden eyes of hers, one could see the years of experience and knowledge that she acquired throughout her life as if she had lived forever.

She just sighed as she saw Yui staring at her, dumbfounded with enlarged brown eyes. Yui herself wasn't expecting the culprit would actually appear in front of her. Now she didn't know what to do next and all she could do was to wait the next thing could happen. Yui felt bad to herself when she shouted furiously at the woman like that.

"That was quite an entry back there. I'm Yakumo Yukari," the blonde woman introduced herself as she opened her pink parasol and twirled it gracefully. An unnerving silence followed the rather surprising introduction. Yui's eyes were still fixed at her as she took a step back. Of course, the natural reaction from any person who would see a woman appear from a magical portal would be running for the exit and never look back as if being chased by an angry but cute polar bear. "Don't be afraid, even though I'm a youkai, I don't fancy human flesh."

The woman claimed herself as a youkai but she looked entirely human at the same time far from being one. Her tone was refined and mature compared to some of her kind and even to other humans, knowing that youkai attack people and even feed on them without any display of mercy. Yukari noticed that fear in the girl's eyes was quickly replaced by curiosity.

"You? Eat humans?" Yui asked in a surprised tone. "What is a youkai by the way?"

Hearing this, the woman slapped her forehead with the palm of her hand. Well, she was interested lately on how a typical person outside her world would react upon revealing that fact of her kind having human flesh as a delicacy. She tried this time around, but she wasn't expecting such response from this particular girl.

People didn't believe in youkai existence, keeping them at bay as only a mere creation of the human mind. Even so, these fantasy creatures were recognized but only limited to folk tales told each and every generation due to their mysterious, albeit fascinating nature.

"You haven't seen a single youkai in your entire life? Not even heard a story or two about them?"

"Oh...can you really eat humans? You look like human to me..."

"I guess I have to eat you now for you to believe me."

"Why steal cake and sweets if you eat humans? What are your plans? Why are you here?"

"Are you suggesting that we youkai only eat humans?"

"I dunno. So, you eat other stuff too?"

Yukari's eyelids slightly twitched in annoyance. She never met someone like Yui before. Wait, there was that crow tengu journalist. That makes two of them for the '_returning one's question with another question_' category. Those traits for the most part were amusing but only in a given time and place. The straightforward tengu was entertaining to converse and circle with, but Yui was far different to be a source of amusement as if the brunette would win unintentionally.

_How many people in the outside world still believe in youkai anyways? In ghosts? In gods? Well, I didn't come here to play anyway..._

Calming herself, the youkai spoke again, "You may forget about that part. Also, you wouldn't mind if I ask your name as well?"

The brunette was hesitant at first but gave her name after considering it for a few seconds. "I'm...Hirsawa Yui."

"Oh, such a lovely name."

"So...you're the one stealing some of the food here in the club room?"

"Straight to the point, aren't you? My, yes, you certainly got the right person."

"Give them back!" Yui retorted angrily as if she just lost something dearly.

"My, you're really cute. Well, even if I wanted to, I'm afraid that's not possible. I do admit, the first-class sweets that you girls are having here captivated my taste."

"Where did you come from anyway?"

"I live in a place called Gensokyo. Will that answer your question?"

"I never heard of that place before..."

"Of course, you wouldn't. It's literally sealed off from this world."

Yui raised a questioning eyebrow to Yukari, who was now cooling herself off with a fan that appeared from one of her gaps. The guitarist crossed her arms before she spoke. "What are you going to do now? We don't have any food left in here, you already took my cake..."

"Actually, I have a proposal for you..."

"Proposal?"

"Yes. Since I got fond of your sweets you had eat. I am just wondering if you could send sweets like those to me if you could spare some."

"Oh...you could ask Mugi-chan for that. She the one bringing those sweets for us."

"It seems that I got the wrong person...I mean, you could ask her to that, right? For one thing, those heavenly delicacies that you have everyday in this room are really matched with high value. In my stead, if you agreed to my small request, you could access Gensokyo anytime you wish. Sounds fair, no?"

Now the youkai that had the ability to appear everywhere was offering a lifetime pass to Gensokyo. Her curiousity suddenly increased to a new level. But what could she benefit from traveling to an unknown place as she would supply Yukari with sweets? If she was a youkai, then her home could be also home to other weird beings. This was somewhat an absurd deal with your expensive sweets was at stake and you need to bother yourself on explaining these things your supplier, although seeing a world beyond she could reach would actually push the buttons of interest of anyone.

"Yui-chan, that would be a splendid idea!"

"M-Mugi-chan? You're still here?" Yui stuttered as she turned her head as she recognized the familiar voice. From the club room's doors, Tsumugi was standing with both hands clasped together.

"Actually, the moment we reached the school gate, I sensed a very powerful presence in here. So, I went back to check it while Mio-chan and the others went ahead," The blonde keyboardist explained, her voice filled with excitement which Yui wondered what could be interesting with the woman in front of them. "My intuition was correct. I only heard about the proposal part though."

"You could sense youkai? From that alone, I could tell that you're no ordinary human then. Perhaps you would be the one referred as Mugi-san?" Yukari asked as she gazed at the newcomer. "Then, why didn't you knew my presence from the beginning then?"

"Oh, that...I was thinking that you wouldn't appear yourself soon, so I continued bringing a lot of sweets with me. I wouldn't want to force you out," Tsumugi replied. "I don't have any idea about you, of course. You might be a dangerous youkai."

"I see. So, you're just waiting for me to come out?" The elegant youkai asked as blonde girl replied with a small nod. "It seems that you're interested in my bargain."

"Yes! I have read a few accounts about Gensokyo. Now that I've heard it from someone living in that place, the legends might be true after all! I can't believe it! Is it true that you could transport us to Gensokyo?" Tsumugi asked; the energy of her voice was getting higher.

"That would be easy, I'll even leave a 'portal' of mine for you to get there. Just to be safe, it will transport you near a certain shrine." The gap youkai's expression slightly darkened. "Although, I cannot guarantee your safety as you traverse our place."

"Huh? Why not?" Yui asked as she tilted her head to the side.

"Gensokyo is home not only to humans but to youkai and other creatures, even gods as well. Do your best to survive," Yukari replied in the most simple, straightforward way she could put it. "Also, I won't be responsible to injuries or even loss of life in our deal. Venture our place in your own discretion."

"Mugi-chan? What do you..."

"Splendid! I'll have the whole month supply for you to be delivered next week."

"Mugi-chan?" Yui uttered in surprise. The deal was somewhat one-sided for her. They would get something that carried more risk unlike on their side giving costly sweets that the only side effect was the food itself being calorie-loaded. Unless you won't eat too much or you have a metabolism like Yui's or any similar ability like that, there won't be any problem at all.

"Oho~ho~ho, that would be too much, too much. I like you Mugi-san! You should pay me a visit in Gensokyo if you have the time." The two began to laugh hysterically as the confused guitarist just shrugged and continued to listen.

"Well, are you sure about that?" The youkai asked again as she wanted to hear a concrete confirmation from Tsumugi.

"We have plenty of those that ended up being spoiled or thrown out. Even if we eat them everyday in the club room, they seemed to be endless though. Actually, I would be glad to give them instead. I won't mind," Tsumugi said with her usual innocent smile which could easily pierce through anyone's soul. "This is already a golden chance for me!"

"I see. Well, time to do my part," Yukari said as she scanned the room with slight interest. "Hm? I think I should put a gap somewhere hidden. For one thing, I don't care for other humans who would enter the gap, but it might save some trouble later."

"How about in the storage room?" Tsumugi suggested. "Only the light music club members are allowed to use this room."

"Why, of course!" Yukari enthusiastically replied. "After you then..."

Tsumugi led the youkai to the said room while Yui followed in curiosity. The keyboardist opened the door and revealed a lot of items placed on a shelf and cabinet, ranging from books, old electronic equipments and school supplies. She was quite thankful that Mio insisted to clean the storage room or there won't be any space for a portal leading to another world. Yukari waved her hand in a downward motion to the empty wall and a tear in the space in front of her opened. Multiple gazing eyes decorated its interior, giving off an eerie feeling to the other girls.

"I guess that should do it! Using that gap will safely transport you to Gensokyo and like I said before, near to a shrine with a miko around your age. She's friendly and would probably give you more details about our place."

"I think we just need to put a curtain or something similar to hide it," Tsumugi said, considering that the probability of someone could find the gap was never zero.

"Yes, that would be better."

"Thank you very much," Tsumugi said as she bowed as an expression of gratitude.

"No...no, I should be the one thanking you girls. The cake yesterday was immensely satisfying. I even game some to my shikigami and she was surprised as well. This might turn out to be better than before, simply grabbing food from convenient stores or fancy restaurants."

"That's a bit, well, straightforward of you."

"What about the cake you took just now?" Yui asked before she could forget about it.

"I would take that as an initial payment for our deal."

Yui wanted to protest. The cake was quite expensive and she had to spent the money originally kept for emergencies and maintenance for her guitar and other stuff. Well, the cake served its purpose anyway but she didn't expect it to be snatched as well...

"B-But," Yui sniffled as she was about to break in her place. "That was..."

"Don't worry, Yui-chan, I'll replace the cake that she took earlier."

Hearing that her efforts wouldn't go to waste, her worries was washed instantly from her and looked at her friend with gleaming eyes. "Really? Thanks!"

"Well, I should leave for now. I have important matters to attend to," Yukari said, already drowsy for some reason then another large opening formed behind her. She stepped inside and the gap disappeared as if nothing was there in the first place.

The two stared back at the gap that the youkai made earlier. It was a weird but convenient method of transporting them to the place called 'Gensokyo'. If they wanted to do so, they should prepare themselves as it won't be an easy exploration. The inhabitants of the place would be their problem as well. Tsumugi already had at least small background about the place but she could only confirm it by getting in there herself.

Yui faced to her friend who was now occupied on her plans exploring the place in the other side of the gap. "Mugi-chan, what if Mio-chan and the others found this out?"

"I think they wouldn't even notice if we just act naturally as if we didn't met that youkai. Everything would be normal," Tsumugi explained. "Oh, this is our little secret, okay?"

"Uh...sure," Yui reluctantly replied as she received another text message, this time from her sister who was currently in the grocery store buying their necessities good for a week. With Yui on your household, food should be in the top of your grocery lists. She was not yet home, so it might be a good idea to drop by the store. She was interrupted in the midst of deciding when Tsumugi asked her.

"Yui-chan, what was her name again?"

"Yukari..."

"Yukari. The name seems," Tsumugi mumbled as she repeated the name over and over in her head. She certainly heard the name before but it was too early to tell. She got too occupied in thinking about Gensokyo that she forgot to ask the name of the youkai before she left.

"Mugi-chan..?"

"Ah...right, we should leave now so I could prepare the one-month supply package for Yukari-san. I'll bring a curtain tomorrow too."

"Mugi-chan, why are you so interested about this Gensokyo place? It seems dangerous too..."

"I'll tell you some other time. It's quite a long tale actually."

* * *

><p>It was late afternoon but it seemed like the sky appeared to be darker. Two girls entered a popular fast food restaurant like the usual. One of the girls had a large brim hat as her headgear and wore a brown overcoat reaching down to her knees. She had gray-colored hair and chestnut eyes. The other had brown hair with a pair of weird goggles on her forehead and she also had a strange set of eyes. One was pale magenta while the other was deep greenish-sapphire. She wore a simple one-piece black and purple dress. Odd enough, those suited them for some reason. People who came across the girls couldn't help to look at them for a second time.<p>

Although both of them were regular customers in the place, the employees and some other customer were still afraid of them. You could say that they were famous in a way, their presence alone made them nervous but they were still loyal customers. There were also some incidents that the brown-haired girl released her rage in the restaurant and instantly, almost everything that runs in electricity malfunctioned. The employees didn't know what caused the breakdowns, but they were aware that this only happened when the girl had a terrible mood and her left eye grew into deep crimson as a match. It would be best if they won't do anything that would anger her.

The moment they ordered their food, the rain started to pour outside as the rainy season was about to enter its way. It could be a nuisance for some but looking from another perspective, it was quite a blessing for others.

"Why do everyone looks at us like that?" The brown-haired girl whispered as shot a threatening glare to the other people staring at them. "We come here often, right?"

"Don't mind them. They're oblivious as long as you don't do anything stupid," The other replied then drank her soda with a straw. "Hm~ It's a good thing that I made all some of my inventions immune to your nonsense."

"What was that?"

"Nothing, carry on."

"Where was I?" The brown-haired girl said to herself in deep thought then she clasped her hand together in delight. "Oh, right! It seems she finally showed up after awhile, huh?"

"You sure? Maybe you're just too excited seeing her..."

"Are you not excited too?"

"_Not that much._ It seems that she found something interesting which made her go back here more often."

"So, about that...our friend got some new pets of her own, right? Interesting~"

"If that's the case I don't mind them. I think you're planning to execute one of your shabby shenanigans again..."

"What's with that attitude?" The brown-haired girl asked with a frown, unwrapping her cheeseburger.

"What is it to me anyway? You even bugged me for a whole month to make a tracker for youkai. I don't see what are you trying to accomplish now, but remember that everyone's patience eventually wear thin. I won't be surprised if she would impale you to the point that you cannot move anymore."

Silence followed to the point that they could hear the voices of the other customers near them. The gray-haired girl was just staring at the scene outside the restaurant. She could see some unlucky pedestrians running while shielding their heads with anything that could offer good protection from the rain. She was not that interested in her companion's plan but they hadn't done anything interesting in the past few months and if Yukari was indeed in the city, which would be a golden chance. She was quite amused that her friend already finished her burger.

"Maybe something that would make Yukari-chan upset? That always work!"

The gray-haired girl nervously waved her hands in her friend's idea. "No, no, no. She would beat us up and throw us somewhere again...like the last time. Don't you have anything better to do this week?"

"How about her pet? I think we could lure her out that way."

"Somehow, I feel like you're just getting yourself another reason to be beaten up..."

"I'm getting bored and we hadn't seen Yukari-chan for awhile, so...why not?"

"Are you sure she would actually show up to save her pet? Why not just visit her normally?"

"Aw, come on! You are a youkai right? Have fun in things like these!"

"Whatever..." She paused for a bit as she took another sip from her soda. "I'm a human, dimwit."

"Really? That doesn't change anything if you asked me..."

* * *

><p>An incident the next day made a couple of adjustments in her life. The Hirasawa sisters were about to cross the street on their way back to their house as a van unexpectedly rushed without prior warning to the two. Yui saw what could be the next scenario on the last few seconds before it could happen. It was dreadful and terrifying sight. Instead, she used the remaining time saving her sister and clutched her guitar to herself. Ui miraculously missed the van by a very small margin as she herself was shocked on her sister's fast response. The next thing she saw, her sister was already lying on the road, drenched on her own blood with her arms still around the guitar. Ui ran towards her unconscious sister as fast as she could.<p>

"Onee-chan! S-Say something! Please..."

Yui felt cold and numb. It was only natural after being ran over by a fast vehicle. The guitar seemed to have more luck than its owner. The instrument was unscathed, which was inexplicable in every way. She may had absorbed the collision from the van, it wasn't enough to fully protect the guitar from being crushed when the van ran over her. Broken guitar or not, the owner's life was the utmost importance.

"S-Someone, please help!"

She tried to speak, but she only coughed out blood. She focused her eyes to see once more. Her vision was hazy but she could see her sister's tears flowing down to her face. She could only managed a weak smile. She knew that this might be her time. Other pedestrians and even the ones in their cars rushed to the scene, forming a makeshift barricade around them. For the passers-by, entirely concerned or not to both sisters, it was something that couldn't be seen everyday. Surely, anyone with a heart would see it a tragedy.

Sadly, they could only wait for the ambulance to arrive while they occassionaly spat complains about slow respond of the rescuers. The driver of the involved vehicle didn't escaped although he insisted that it was all an accident. He claimed that the van only accelerated more instead of slowing down as he stomped on the brakes. He even tried to turn the steering wheel in desperation but it suddenly moved on its own, aiming them directly to the sisters. As expected, those weren't enough reason to excuse himself from the case. Who would buy such claims such as that in the first place? He knew himself well enough that he didn't have the intention to harm anybody.

"...Hold on! I'm here for you, onee-chan! P-Please don't leave me!"

Some more minutes after, they finally heard the wailing siren of an ambulance approaching to the scene. Then, every second passed became minutes to everyone as a paramedic checked the vital signs of Yui while another person from the crew tried to control the bleeding. Judging from their faces, they looked like to be devoid of hope just looking in the state of the girl. They didn't waste much more time as they carefully put Yui on a stretcher and entered the ambulance.

Although they managed to bring Yui to the nearest hospital, there was no assurance if she would survive. Her friends waited for more than an hour and the doctor bought even more terrible news. According to him, Yui won't last long, even if she miraculously survive, she won't be able to continue her life normally given her grave condition. She was greatly injured; her legs were almost splintered, the impact from the vehicle crushed her rib cage along with the other vital organs. The doctor sadly stated that they were only delaying the inevitable. He even considered the girl lucky enough to reach the hospital alive and Yui probably consumed most of the luck alone in the process of surviving the initial collision. Still, it wouldn't be a reason for them to just give up. They assured that they would do what they can.

_Certainly, the girl didn't deserve a punishment like that. What they could do was pray, nothing more. Each passing second seemed painful for the people around her._

_Unless, a miracle happened. Miracles? Do miracles still existed in the world where such things weren't acknowledged anymore, much less believed in?_

_Unless, the time could be reversed to save her? That was even more outrageous..._

_Unless..._

* * *

><p>In Yui's room, standing in front of her bed, the blonde youkai was looking at her battered body. Pain was evident on the face of the once cheerful Yui, who was now relying on the life support devices surrounding her. The youkai wasn't expecting to see such distressing sight after she left them in the club room just a few hours ago. She thought that the girl would be fine at first despite of those injuries, then after a minute, she realized that the girl wasn't youkai. A human's regeneration was slow compared to youkai. She wanted to stab a syringe to one of her eye only because of that thought. It couldn't be help anyways; this already happened and the girl cannot be returned to her former, cheerful state. It was only a matter of time before the girl meets the shinigami who ferry souls to Higan.<p>

She touched the cold forehead of the girl and her hand radiated a faint glow. She knew that the girl would soon give in. Suddenly, a grin formed across her face as she thought of an favorable idea.

_Hm...you can't die yet, dear. Not now. Maybe I should call some help now? Besides, your friend probably noticed me the soon that I entered here. She's quite dangerous for a human, don't you think?_

Her hand got brighter as she focused her mind with intense concentration. She was neither healer nor doctor to do complicated procedures or powerful incantations or life-saving miracles in such cases.

But she had her ways to improvise...

She was the youkai of boundaries after all...

_There...that should add time, even for a little... Now that I'm done here, I will have a chat with her for a bit. Maybe outside to catch some evening air._

* * *

><p>A few hours already passed since the accident, although the girls felt that the time was particularly slower. They were all seated around a small table in a room of the hospital where Ui was currently resting, save for Nodoka who volunteered to fetch some refreshments and snacks for them. After they learned about Yui's condition, not one of them uttered a word although there were occasional sobbing. They were still in the state of shock, no one ever expected this to happen, no one did. Yui maybe a ditz but she was not that careless to let herself in a grave situation. For now, they could only hope for a miracle to happen. There was nothing they could do. Ui on the other hand, was unconscious and couldn't not apprehend what she just heard. Her only partner and sister would be gone soon. What hurt her the most was that she saw with her sister and she should have been the one struggling for her life.<p>

Also, they had expected that their adviser would come, but her absence made everything more disheartening. In fact, she was already informed by Ui through a text message beforehand and still no Sawako. Until now, they were trying to contact the teacher since that last reply of hers saying that she might come late. After that, she didn't respond to the succeeding calls and messages they had sent. They assumed that the teacher was busy that moment, but she couldn't possibly ignore a student of hers whose life was already hanging by a mere thread. "What of Sawako-sensei?" Azusa asked in a muted voice as if it was a whisper. "Where is she now?"

Tsumugi blinked twice in the question. She had no idea either as their attempts of calling their adviser appeared to be pointless but she had to try once more. "Should I call her again?"

"Well, even if she's here. What can she do anyway?" The drummer responded dryly.

"I believe Sawako-sensei cares for us more than everything else! She'll definitely come!" Tsumugi defended as if the teacher was their mother. "She will! She probably ran into trouble along the way!"

"For how long? She was supposed to be here with us ages ago! If she cared for her students, she should be here now!"

Azusa's chest started to throb uncontrollably as she watched the tension between the two. "Mugi-senpai's right! She's not here but I could tell that she's worried sick of Yui-senpai since it happened! There's no one to blame here, Ritsu-senpai. No one would ever wish or expect for this to happen!"

"I can't help to think that Sawa-chan left us like this too!"

"You know well as much as us," the keyboardist replied softly then she went for a brief pause. "Sawako-sensei will not abandon us."

"Yeah, I know that she cares," Ritsu muttered as she calmed down a bit, her eyes fixed on the floor. "Still, I...I didn't think it would end like this. Everything was fine just the other day then this? Damnit!"

"This is a terrible dream. This is not happening, right?" the bassist suddenly asked with her hands covering her exhausted face as the rest looked at her worriedly.

"Mio-senpai, please stay strong...she needs us," Azusa comforted as she rubbed the back of the bassist.

Ritsu slowly shook her head in disbelief and out of the blue she mumbled, "I don't think we could continue the club after this..."

Those very words made Mio's sobbing intensify as if she heard the end of everyone's in existence. Even though the room was air-conditioned, Azusa was perspiring and found herself unable to speak.

"Keep your thoughts to yourself. She's not going to die," Tsumugi replied in a somewhat displeased tone. Everyone looked at her skeptically. The keyboardist was able to maintain her composure despite of the heavy, gloomy atmosphere circling them. "I know she could hold on."

Ritsu gazed at the eyes of Tsumugi as if she just heard a cruel joke. She stood from her seat to look at the keyboardist in eye-level. "What? You saw her condition right? You were there when the doctor explained everything. There's no one could survive..."

"R-Ritsu-senpai? Don't say things like that! I want...I want to believe," Azusa interrupted Ritsu as tears started to fall on her face. "Yui-senpai is a cheerful, strong girl!"

Tsumugi, not moving her eyes away from the drummer, asked in a still calm manner, "Are you implying that we should abandon her?"

The drummer was quite taken aback with the firm response but still retaining to her point nonetheless. "I hate to say this, but anyone who would suffer in injuries like those won't survive in a day! Of course, I wanted her to live! But what can I do? What can we do? Pray nonstop until a miracle saves her instead?"

Azusa was now struggling of keeping the worst but already apparent possibility that could happen which only made her chest tighter as if an unknown force was constricting her heart. Thinking of her beloved senpai gone was too much of her to bear. "Ritsu-senpai...stop it please...you're not helping. It's not going to happen!"

"Ritsu! W-What are you saying? S-She's our friend!" Mio cried.

"This is reality! Even if we wished that she would live, that won't change anything other than we tried hard!"

The keyboardist closed her eyes for a few seconds as she nodded in accord. "That's true..."

"Mugi-senpai...?"

Tsumugi stood up from her seat. Although the point of their drummer was right, Tsumugi knew that waiting wouldn't do nothing. She felt a familiar presence coming from the emergency room. The same one emanating from the youkai she met before. The presence lasted not more than a minute though and reappeared again somewhere outside the building. She gathered again her thoughts as the name Yukari struck her head again. Her friends attentively watched her walk to the door and finally disappearing from their sight as she closed it behind. As she walked through the quiet corridors, the student council president passed by unnoticed. Nodoka, seeing the determined expression of the blonde, decided not to disturb her as she went ahead back to their room.

_If anyone here cannot help her, maybe she's my last bet..._

_I could only hope..._

Asking help from the youkai was the only way she could think of now. She didn't even know if that youkai would help her in the first place. They had a deal, but that wasn't enough reason and not her purpose to begin with. Again, the name Yukari troubled her. She read some books and accounts regarding a place called 'Gensokyo', created by a powerful youkai who could manipulate boundaries. She heard from Yukari she was from Gensokyo and judging from her ability, she could transfer things from one place to another almost instantly. Her assumptions still need to be confirmed though and it wouldn't hurt to try.

Azusa stared back to the floor helplessly with her teary eyes. "What's going to happen now?"

* * *

><p>"Aren't you a <em>clairvoyant, <em>Mugi-san?" The gap youkai was sitting on a bench by the wall with her parasol open, blocking the lanturn's light above her. She didn't bothered to ask the youkai what she was doing in an empty parking lot, she could just entered the hospital normally like any human, not to mention that Yukari's appearance was identical to them. Perhaps her flashy way of dressing would give her identity away or she just didn't feel like it. Whatever was going on in Yukari's mind was mostly incomprehensible which shrouded her in mysteries, even to some of her friends back in Gensokyo.

Silence followed in which the nightly sounds took over them.

Tsumugi walked towards the gap youkai and sat beside her. "Good Evening."

"Humans are very fragile, don't you think?"

Hearing this, the keyboardist's body tensed but still remained her composure at least. "She won't survive..."

"Yes. I'm well aware of that. I even checked her beforehand," The youkai replied then went for a brief pause. "I'm afraid it was no mere accident either."

_That explains your presence earlier...What is she planning?_

"Do you know something?" Tsumugi asked with interest.

"It's just a guess. They're getting troublesome at some point but I just let it slip though. Putting that aside, if you don't do anything soon, she won't be seeing another day."

"I'm no miracle worker..."

"True enough, and so am I. Well, I do know a certain shrine maiden with that power, but all we need is a doctor. Plain and simple, isn't it?" Tsumugi raised a baffled eyebrow to the youkai. They already heard the verdict from the doctor who examined Yui which also means any doctor would say the same as well. She didn't know if the suggestion of the youkai was a mere jest but Yukari's expression remained the same.

"Doctor? The problem now is beyond their capabilities," she replied in the most casual way she could put it. "They did what they can for my friend, but it was far more than they could handle."

"After all, she's no ordinary doctor unlike the ones you have here and she's the perfect person for the job. I believe she could help your friend." Yukari added, as she put away her parasol. Hearing this, she suddenly brightened up. Was there someone that had the expertise that normal doctors couldn't do?

"Bring Yui to that 'doctor' you speak of then."

Asking the girl of something obvious was futile, but Yukari allowed herself to ask in a way that would not offend Tsumugi, "You seemed very determined to save her life. What is she to you?"

"_She is my friend,_" Tsumugi said with emphasis. "I don't want her to go yet..."

"I really admire the bond you share with your friends. Indeed only a few souls in this world that you could give your trust."

"Is that mean you're going to help?"

"Oh...it would be very troublesome for my part," Yukari said as she crossed her arms. "This will definitely involve me with that lunarian again, but not that I hate her."

"Then what are you doing in Yui's room?"

Just as the gap youkai predicted, she smiled inwardly. "She's still involve in our bargain. If it weren't for her, our first meeting won't probably transpire at all."

"That doesn't sound convincing. Do you have an...ulterior motive or something?"

"What's important now is to save her, correct? I suggest you should focus to the most important first."

Silence dominated the area again, Tsumugi still staring at the eyes of the gap youkai as if searching something through them. Yukari was rather fascinated. The girl then smiled as she clasped her hands together while Yukari perked up with interest like she was anticipating it. "Hm? How about increasing the supply of the sweets by fifty percent?"

"Well...I'm not quite certain about," Yukari replied hesitantly with a bit of a playful voice.

Tsumugi sighed then a smile followed as if she already knew what to say next. "Okay, I'll double it..."

The gap youkai splayed her fan open to cover her face in a teasing fashion. "Deal~ You play your cards well, Tsumugi-san."

_T-Thank goodness... _Tsumugi breathed out a heavy sigh, relieved that everything would turn out fine in the end._ So, all that trouble for that? I can't still follow her reasoning...I better be more careful then..._

She paused as she tried to think of their next action. "We should bring her out of the hospital, first."

"I leave that to you. After that, I can assure you that she will be fine."

"One more thing. I've been thinking of this for awhile now. Honestly, starting from the moment that you left the club room yesterday," Tsumugi said as she stood up.

"Yes?"

"Are you really Yakumo Yukari?" Tsumugi asked, looking straight to the eyes of the gap youkai. Yukari's eyebrows raised in response to the question in curiousity.

"What kind of question is that? What do you want to prove now?"

"For the sake of clarification. I wish to know the truth."

* * *

><p>"W-Where am I? I'm already dead, right?" Yui asked herself weakly as she slowly opened her eyes. She felt that almost all of her body was covered with bandages which was a bother for her. Compared to what she felt in the last time she was awake, she significantly improved. Her head hurts a bit but everything else seemed to be fine as long as she didn't move them carelessly.<p>

She could hear some voices outside as if they were playing a game. The morning breeze was chilly and refreshing. She felt that she wasn't inside the hospital anymore although she was still on a bed; a very comfortable one. She tried to move her body up but to no avail. She almost forgot that she was mowed down by a van and somehow managed to wake up after that.

"Nope, you're not dead yet but pretty battered to the point that you have a very low chance of survival, considering that you're human. It's like you're ready to cross the Sanzu River the moment you were brought here. You just need to rest for now. Also, thank Yukari for bringing you here too," A woman explained as she fixed her glasses before she continued reading a book which appeared to have complicated contents. "Your name is Hirasawa Yui, if I'm not mistaken? Maybe I should tell that you're currently here in Gensokyo, specifically inside our home."

She paused for some seconds as she shifted to another page in her book before she spoke again. "Oh...I'm Yagokoro Eirin, if you might ask."

The woman had a long braided white hair, wearing blue and red dress, a matching cap and a pair of glasses, having a striking resemblance of a nurse. Like the blonde youkai, the woman was seemed to be human and possessed vast knowledge, apparently, on the field of medicine but there was still more than that. She was sitting in front of a table with a stack of books and other papers on it. She was reading a book which seemed very interesting, as her eyes were focused on its contents. Then again, maybe not interesting for Yui.

_Huh? Yukari-chan? She...helped me...? That woman..is she a doctor? Maybe a nurse?_

_G-Gensokyo? I'm here in the place Yukari-chan was talking about? This doesn't make sense...I should be dead, the van surely hit me and..._

"Good Morning!" A girl cheerily greeted as she entered the room. She was wearing a white dress, a cute carrot necklace and bunny ears hanging down on her head. Her childlike appearance perfectly concealed her true age which was believed that she was one of the oldest youkai in Gensokyo. The woman, which Yui assumed to be a medical practitioner of sorts, glanced to her side as she droned, "Please keep it down. We have a patient resting here."

"A-Ah...Good Morning," Yui weakly replied in impulse as she turned her head to acknowledge the girl. She saw something that gave her second thoughts. She focused her eyes to make her obscure vision better, something was surely wrong on the girl's head.

"Tewi, what are you doing here? Are the rabbits doing their morning tasks?" Eirin asked expectantly as she removed her glasses and closed the book she was reading.

"Yep...I just wanted to check our patient."

"My patient," corrected the white-haired woman.

"Of course. Yours. Whatever."

"W-What's that on your head?" Yui suddenly asked as she continued to stare at the girl with great interest since she entered the room.

The rabbit girl proceeded in checking her head with a hand. "M-My head? What's wrong with it?"

"Are those...bunny ears?"

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"How cute. We used to wear those sometimes."

The girl blushed for a bit. She knew that an outsider like Yui wouldn't know that the ears were real at first glance. Yui assumed that the people around here like wearing weird costumes too.

"Ah, my ears are the real deal. I'm a rabbit youkai anyway," the rabbit bluntly replied then faced Eirin. " She's finally awake now, huh? I thought she will be sleeping forever."

"Hm? Are you expecting me to fail or something?" Eirin said with a grin.

"Well, sometimes for a change."

"Uhm...you're a youkai?" asked Yui.

"Yes. Why do you ask? Is this the first time you've seen a rabbit youkai?"

"Yakumo-san said that she's a youkai but I can't see the difference besides that she have powers like those portal thingies. Is that magic she was using for those? She said that youkai eat humans. Actually...she's the first youkai that I've ever seen...but i'm not convinced about that."

"Huh? So youkai are really that rare in the outside world?" Tewi asked. "Or maybe your just an airhead to begin with? Also, not all youkai eat humans. You humans are the gluttonous ones! Eating our lesser kind to satisfy your stupid taste! Even youkai started to eat them too!" The rabbit youkai paused before shrugging. "That's reality I guess, humans wouldn't mind eating such a cute, harmless creature. Just because serving rabbit meat is tradition doesn't mean that it's already good..."

"Tewi, our patient here seemed to be not the one who will devour a whole rabbit on sight. You could ramble more about it outside. I don't want her to be disturbed."

"I-I don't eat rabbits...I didn't know that they can be eaten too," Yui nervously replied.

"A-Ah, I'm sorry. Just need to take it off my head. To think of it, we haven't had a human patient who stayed here this long."

"Hm? I thought you two already suggested alternatives for rabbit meat during gatherings and festivals?" Eirin asked the youkai rabbit.

"They're too stubborn, you know?"

"Youkai sure are interesting," came a sudden remark from the brunette.

"Going back to the topic, think of them as preternatural beings. Some even look entirely human and thinks like one. Some are savage and attacks anything within their territory like wild animals," Eirin explained then she earned a blank look from the girl. "Ah, don't think much about it. You won't survive in this place if you will try to know the logic and reason behind things happening here."

"M-May I ask how long I've been here?"

"You sure ask a lot of questions, huh? I guess that's only natural for an outsider," Tewi replied as she scratched her head.

"I suppose this is already the sixth day. I'm quite surprised. She's not that friendly to humans but she personally brought you here. What did you do anyway?"

"W-Who?"

"I mean, Yakumo Yukari, the youkai of boundaries. She brought you here in a near-death state. She's not the type who would do such things just for the sake of doing it."

She tried to extract an answer from her fuzzy memory. After that accident, everything in her head was rattled and went out of place. It didn't take much time for her to remember though as she concentrated harder but pain seemed to increase as well. "Ah...it was a deal made by Yakumo-san. She wanted my friend's sweets badly."

"Ah...really? That's Yukari alright." Eirin smiled. "It seems that she really does something outside Gensokyo..."

"I-If I'm here, then who's in the hospital back in...the outside world?" Yui asked, nervousness evident in her voice as she only realized it just now. That could create a hellstorm of problems, probably they were panicking right now since she was gone for more than three days.

"Don't tell me that the gap youkai took you from the hospital without thinking about that," said Tewi in a rather displeased tone.

Eirin replied with a slight frown, "I'm afraid Yukari only knew the answer but I'm certain that she already thought of that as well. I also asked her about the matter but she only said that everything was taken care of."

"What? Something like creating a perfect copy of hers then pretend to be in a near-death state? That's wicked!" Tewi said excitingly as she tried to imagine such ability.

"Can Yakumo-san do that?" asked Yui.

"I doubt that Yukari could do that. I mean, she's already powerful in a way but it is not our problem anymore," Eirin said as she put her index finger on her chin. "A youkai that could manipulate boundaries is not that far from being a god."

"Except that she's kind of a weirdo to me," Tewi remarked. "I guessed that balanced it...in a way or two."

Everyone's attention went to the door as they heard someone knocking behind it.

"Who is it?"

"Master, are you there?"

"Yes. Come inside."

The girl had deep red eyes, long lavender hair and she was wearing clothes similar to Yui's school uniform - black blazer on top of her white shirt with matching skirt and red necktie. The girl was somewhat around Yui's age but she was way older than she looked. Also, the girl had rabbit ears on her head, except slender and less fluffy than Tewi's. Now, another rabbit made an appearance but Yui seemed to accept everything and paid no worries if everyone inside the mansion were friendly.

"Master, good morning," a much taller rabbit girl greeted.

"Oh, Udonge, perfect timing! I need you to deliver these medicines to the village, " the lunarian requested, taking out a container under the desk. "These are just recently made too."

"A-Ah, yes. Also, there's someone that needs to visit our patient," The moon rabbit replied as she stepped aside, allowing the visitor to enter the room.

She had blonde hair wearing a strange hat decorated with amulets and an outfit very similar to Yukari. Achieving the status of being a nine-tailed fox, she had superior ability in terms of intellect and power surpassing most youkai. On her back, she carried a guitar case that made Yui remember her own. First, she saw the rabbits of Eientei, now a fox youkai serving Yukari as a shinigami. Any normal person would get their brain out of commission for a while being surrounded by youkai, unless those youkai saved you.

"Ah, Yukari's shikigami, right?" Eirin recalled. "You're early today."

"Good Morning, Yagokoro-san," The fox youkai greeted as she bowed in custom. "I see that everything's in order as expected since my last visit."

"What's a shikigami?" Yui curiously asked as she met the eyes of the fox youkai.

Eirin leaned to the guitarist and whispered to her ear. "To put it simple, she's the fox underling of that lazy gap youkai."

"Ooohhh..." Yui nodded while the shikigami raised an eyebrow.

"Whatever that was, I felt that I'm insulted there..."

Ran wasted no time as she approached the girl on the bed with the guitar case she was carrying.

"Yukari-sama wanted to give this to you. I believe this is one of your most cherished possessions, Hirasawa-san." The fox youkai unzipped the case and revealed Yui's Gibson Les Paul guitar. She remembered carrying it during the accident but was relieved as there were no visible damages at all.

"Thank you! I missed Gitah so much!" Yui said as she received the guitar then she hugged it tightly. They never saw someone who give so much affection to an object.

_A lifeless, inanimate object._

"Why are you looking at me like that, Udonge?" Eirin asked as she noticed her apprentice gave her a frown.

"Master, what kind of medicine she took now?" The rabbit asked with an displeased face. She knew well enough that her master liked to experiment making different kinds of medicines with weird effects. Eirin just looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm certain that is not a side-effect of my medicines."

"I wonder that, master..."

"If you still have doubts, why not try one yourself?"

Yui caressed her guitar as brand new cheerfulness filled her body. "I'm glad you're safe! It's almost like a dream!"

"Your instrument has a name, huh? No, more like you named your instrument," said Tewi, more or less surprised in Yui's affection towards her guitar. "Are you sure that the medicine's side effects aren't kicking in?"

"Tewi, you're starting on me again."

The shikigami smiled. "Yukari-sama would be glad to see you in great condition."

"Where is Yakumo-san anyway?" Yui asked as she looked up at Ran who just blinked in the question.

"Lemme guess," Eirin said as she gave a sly grin to the shikigami.

"You don't have to say it, Yagokoro-san."

"Yukari sure does know how to laze around and let her shikigami do all the work."

Reisen whispered to herself, "Isn't that somehow the same for me...?" Her master sometimes went overboard to things and that inevitably involve her most of the time. The thought of it made her shudder, drinking all those new concoctions Eirin made and ridiculous amount of workload. Even when there were a lot of rabbits in the mansion at their disposal. Well, the rabbits only listen to Tewi anyways.

She now looked at the container handed to her. The same container that she would put in her backpack and distribute them personally to their regular customers. After the errand, she could predict the next ones like she always do. And there was Tewi, who sometimes interrupt with her annoying pranks. "It's early in the morning and I have to deliver these..."

"I heard that Udonge~ What are you complaining about?" Eirin asked in a playful way but Reisen could feel that it was exactly the opposite.

"M-Master, i-it's not like that..." Reisen stuttered, drops of nervous sweat trickled down her face.

"Tewi~ Can you get me those _things_ in the cabinet?" Eirin requested in a rather sweet voice.

"Roger!" Tewi saluted and went to the said cabinet in the other end of the room. Her fellow rabbit was already cowering in fear as she slowly opened it. "Reisen~ It is time!"

"P-Please... I-I was just kidding. I'll deliver these now," Reisen said as she quickly grabbed the container's handle.

"What's inside that cabinet?" Yui asked, quite surprised in the moon rabbit's reaction. The cabinet seemed to contain something unpleasant, at least for Reisen.

"You don't want to know, Hirasawa-san. You don't have to," replied Eirin, still wearing her creepy and subtle smile. The shikigami just sighed in the sudden shift of the atmosphere. An awkward shift at that.

"Uhm...I-I think my work here is done. Although Yukari-sama wanted to bring you back to the outside world as soon as possible, it would be best to not return for awhile until things had gotten better. She mentioned that bringing you here made a minor commotion among your friends, especially your sister who wanted to know your current whereabouts," Ran informed as she took a step back. "Oh, another thing. One of your acquaintances wishes for your fast recovery. The other girl involved in your deal with my master. Tsumugi-san, correct?"

"Huh? How did she knew that I'm still alive?"

"I heard she's the one who requested Yukari-sama to bring you here. She also helped to get you out of the hospital. "If you worry about your businesses in the outside world, my master already taken care of any immediate problems."

The brunette made a confused expression. "I see. What do you mean by outside world?"

Ran directed her eyes to the ceiling for a few seconds as she pondered for a simple answer to Yui. "Gensokyo is currently separated from the outside world with a powerful barrier not seen by the naked eye. You cannot find this place in any conventional maps made in your world. Plus, the barrier that encloses Gensokyo prevents entry to outsiders, but there are some exceptions in this case."

"Like what?"

"Examples would be items and even humans themselves sometimes drift here unintentionally from outside."

"That sounds silly but...I don't think you're bluffing. I guess I need to stay here until I can move again."

Eirin was quite amused in the guitarist's unchanged reaction. Most outsiders' natural response to those details were screams and panic, only to get eaten by the local youkai for the next few hours after finding their way out. They would be lucky enough if they met someone that might lead them to the largest human settlement in Gensokyo. "You seem to take things lightly, Hirasawa-san."

"Thank you for your time. I shall take my leave then," Ran bowed down before she was accompanied her back to the exit by the moon rabbit. After a minute, the shikigami went back with an embarrassed face.

"I-I forgot. Yagokoro-san, do you still have those supplements for Chen?" Ran sheepishly asked as her other goal of visiting Eientei almost slipped out of her mind.

Eirin chuckled lightly. "Ah...I'd thought you would ask. I still have plenty of those."

"Who's Chen?" asked Yui as she heard yet a new name. Eirin sighed in response.

"Save those other questions for later, please..."


	2. Disclosures

**/Notes/**

Ah~ Finally! It's been awhile (and it felt like years since this story started)...

My apologies for holding this chapter for this long. I only hope your wait will be compensated by this chapter. If not...uhm, kindly return my head on a stake if that will help you feel better. (or probably free mochi from me too.)

Anyways, without further interruptions...

I welcome you once again to this absurd story of mine. Enjoy reading~

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2 : Disclosures<strong>

* * *

><p>The club room was empty, except for the music club's keyboardist and the ancient youkai of boundaries.<p>

Tsumugi was standing by the window, staring outside in deep thought while the gap youkai was seated comfortably on a chair with a cup of tea in her hand. Her mind was still set on how she would explain the truth to the others and how she should prepare for the torrent of possible questions that follows. After some 'classified' negotiations with the hospital management, the guitarist was discharged without the notice of her other friends and pretended that she was going to be transferred to a better hospital to save their friend. She couldn't think of a better excuse but it proved to be the most sensible one since it was not far from the truth. The only thing she couldn't answer in her friends' questions was about the exact whereabouts of Yui. Of course, saying that her friend was currently in a mystical land filled with youkai would make things out of hand. Let alone those who would actually believe her.

The following days were harder as she already anticipated. Ui, being the most affected among them, was frantic about her sister. She kept asking Tsumugi during breaks in school about Yui as she wanted to see her sister as soon as possible. Tsumugi couldn't blame her for worrying so much, not to mention that she witnessed the incident firsthand. She couldn't help to wonder if Ui was doing fine with the absence the only person she hoped that would enter their home with a welcoming hug. Ui, compared to her ditzy older sister, was mature and could probably apprehend things way better than any of them but, could she continue onward for long without the motivation that she constantly received from her beloved sister? The strength that prevented hindrances from slowing her down? Tsumugi didn't want to know the answer as she would likely to stab herself first with a knife or just use a simple decapitating spell instead for quick measure.

But she couldn't blame herself either as it was very clear that Yui would be gone without any actions from her part.

Suspicions and doubts also aroused as time passes. Yui's friends could only receive information on her current condition from Tsumugi, which was quite questionable. They also noticed the change in their keyboardist's usual aura, often silent as if in a state of trance when they were together. Fortunately for Tsumugi, school and their club activities provided to be a great diversion although the latter seemed to have no progress at all since Yui was not around to complete everything.

She was somewhat at lost until Yukari made an unexpected visit in the club room after everyone else went home, bringing with her news about the brunette currently resting in Gensokyo. According to the gap youkai, Yui was already recovering fast. Maybe a week or two for her full recovery. At first, the anxiety that clung her from the day of the accident quickly disappeared but her mood yet again faded when she thought of her dilemma.

Yukari suddenly gave a suggestion to the keyboardist: drop by to Gensokyo, particularly in the so-called eternal mansion to give them a chance to visit Yui. Although the gap youkai willingly offered her help, Tsumugi couldn't help to wonder if it will have a equivalent payment sooner or later. It was clear enough that the keyboardist couldn't wait for another week or more to cope with the pressure she already accumulated from the previous ones. She would do anything to save her friend.

As each passing minute, she thought of every possible thing that might happen today. She was quite nervous but told herself that things would come to normal.

"I assume that you have already reached a conclusion?"

"Yes, thank you for your help. Everything's clear now."

"You did a decent job. Everyone believed that she still lives which is the most important detail to lessen their anxiety, even for a bit," Yukari said as she glanced around her once again. The light, relaxed feeling that she always got when visiting a certain shrine back in Gensokyo was somehow the same in the music room as well, as if embracing everyone who would stay there. "Hm~ I won't get tired of this room anytime soon."

"I'm happy that you like the club room. It's almost like our second home, I think."

"Now that I observed awhile ago, it seems that there are only a handful of students around here now. Did something happen that I'm not aware of?"

"It's only natural. We don't have classes today."

Yukari let out a small cough as she continued. "And you still meet up here? Quite commendable."

"Actually, we don't do anything..."

The two were interrupted as the doors opened. Tsumugi greeted them as she recognized the newcomers. "Good morning, everyone."

"Oh...Mugi-senpai? You're early today," noted Azusa. "Good morning too."

"Mugi, Good Morning," Mio greeted as her eyes landed on the blonde woman. She felt a cold chill on her back as the woman stared back with her golden eyes for a few seconds before resuming on sipping tea.

"W-Who is she, Mugi?" She whispered. "Is she a relative of yours?"

Tsumugi approached the bassist, glancing back to the woman by the table. "Oh, no. She's a friend of mine."

"What's with her outfit?" Ritsu asked as she glanced at the clothes of the gap youkai, visible of elegance and refinement that could only be found to the likes of their keyboardist. "Well, she _is_ a friend of Mugi..."

"Ritsu-senpai, she might hear you!" Azusa whispered with a jab of her elbow to the side of the drummer.

"Now that we're all here, I'll prepare tea first," Tsumugi announced then she approached the cupboard and took a tea set of high value that she brought in the club room. Thankfully, the table was enough to accommodate all of them as they sat together with Yukari.

As the keyboardist prepared tea, Mio couldn't take her eyes off from the refined woman. The mere presence of Yukari made her feel uncomfortable although it was far from any threat. Her chest received a swift jolt when the gap youkai took notice and subsequently smiled at her. In panic, she directed her eyes elsewhere as she tried to calm herself down without attracting the attention of her friends, only to fail when Azusa saw her already losing composure.

"Mio-senpai? What's the matter?" asked a concerned Azusa.

Mio leaned closer to the pigtailed girl beside her. "Do-Don't you feel something...ominous from her? I mean, from Tsumugi's friend?"

"I'm quite nervous too from some reason. Could it be that she is not that friendly compared to Mugi-senpai?"

"Something tells me that she's not just an ordinary person..."

"What do you mean, Mio-chan?"

Mio almost froze on her seat as Tsumugi was already behind her. "Uh...Uhm, nothing at all."

"I see. Here's your tea," Tsumugi said as she gave the tea cup to the bassist who took it with slightly trembling hands.

"A-Ah, thank you."

"Don't be afraid of her, Mio-chan._ She's just like that._"

As the keyboardist was done in distributing the tea cups, she sat down beside the gap youkai and breathe in deeply as to make herself calm.

"Huh? Did I miss one small detail about what we're going to do today?" Ritsu asked, confused on the air of urgency building up inside the room.

"It's about Yui-chan."

Azusa's eyes were immediately filled with excitement as she finally heard something she was waiting for. "Yui-senpai? R-Really? What is she doing now?"

"Well, that's some good news, isn't it?"

"She's doing well now. It's all thanks to Yakumo-san's assistance," Tsumugi said as she looked at the gap youkai who was enjoying herself with tea.

Yukari spoke as she gestured her hand to the keyboardist, "Pardon me if I haven't introduced myself earlier. My name is Yakumo Yukari. It's a pleasure meeting all of you."

"U-Uhm...uh, nice to meet you too, Y-Yakumo-san," Mio stuttered as nervousness started to bite her again.

"Huh? Why do you need to bring her here, Mugi?" asked Ritsu.

"I guess I should tell what really happened that night then?" said Tsumugi as she looked back at the gap youkai. Yukari nodded in accord as she sipped her own tea in content. "I was the one who planned the sudden disappearance of Yui that night."

"Disappearance? You mean transferred? The doctor said that to us," recalled Mio.

"But that was it. We didn't even know that she was transferred!" added Ritsu. "We were inside the same hospital when that happened!"

Tsumugi inhaled deeply again before she spoke in a soft tone, "T-To tell you the truth...I made the doctor to cooperate with us."

"W-What do you mean 'cooperating'? Don't you mean..."

"Yes. The doctor was an addition to convince you that Yui must be transferred to another hospital elsewhere while Yakumo-san did her part and brought Yui to someone that is capable to mend her," Tsumugi explained. "In fact, Yui is not here in our world anymore, more like in another place or dimension that cannot be accessed by any known conventional means."

The absurd claim of the keyboardist was enough to silence the whole room. Azusa and Mio traded confused looks as Ritsu felt like she was just punched straight on her face, draining her sense of reality in the process.

"Another...dimension?" Mio's face was quickly replaced with confusion. "I'm not sure if I could really follow."

"Mugi-senpai? Is there really someone in that place that could help Yui-senpai.?" asked Azusa, lost in the claim of her blonde senior.

"I don't get much of it but," said Ritsu crossly, "Are you deciding things for her as if she was a close relative of yours? You should have asked everyone, especially Ui, before doing that!"

Azusa placed a hand on Ritsu's shoulder. "R-Ritsu-senpai...that's not going to help."

"Also, what do you mean by this _another dimension_ crap? Do you think anyone sane enough would believe that?"

"Ritsu-senpai..."

This time, Tsumugi replied in a cold voice. "If I 'm not mistaken, aren't we a family from the very start?"

The words of the blonde keyboardist struck Ritsu hard.

Tsumugi was right. Ever since they revived the light music club from being demolish due to the damned minimum requirement of members. To think of it from the very beginning, saving the club wasn't possible without their ditzy, food-loving friend coming herself to join the club despite the unfortunate fact that she didn't know any instrument beside castanets and the sweets they fed to Yui contributed to her decision, even in a small fraction. At first, they were just that desperate because of the given deadline and they were only one member short for being an official club. Also, there was this fact that there might be other better candidates besides her but instead kept Yui or their efforts forming the club would entirely go to waste. They were, more or less, happy that at least one more soul in their school got interested in the club.

Still, they didn't give up on Yui, teaching her the fundamental basics of music and playing the guitar with the occasional complains about practicing too hard or without having her daily dose of tea and snacks; sometimes, even helping her in academics too. One could depict her as a good-for-nothing freeloader but she was really a hard-working person and a faithful companion. The After School Tea Time wouldn't be the same without her and that was a fact they could never erase or disregard. Even other students knew that their bond were quite remarkable which made it hard for a new applicant to join in the club.

Ritsu lowered her head as she was not yet convinced. "Well...that doesn't explain everything!"

"You heard the doctor, right? About her chances of survival?"

"What about that?"

"She could have died there if I didn't do anything. Maybe I should say _we_ didn't do anything. I simply entrusted her to someone capable of helping her. What I did is for her sake. I clearly knew that explaining the process would be difficult to explain and you might disagree with it. The lack of time reached to the extent that I didn't have the chance for everyone's consent which could only take more time. Please reconsider this."

Knowing that the others were listening intently, she spoke again.

"Why not visiting her now?" The question made her smile. Her friends perked up and gave her a mix of curious and eager look as if they were waiting for it since the very start.

Mio gazed straight to the eyes of the club's keyboardist. "You mean..._now_?"

Tsumugi gave her a nod. "Yes, although I heard it might take a few more weeks for her full recovery."

"Where is she exactly resting now?" Mio asked. "Honestly, what you said earlier is hard to comprehend."

This time, the youkai of boundaries answered as she finished her cup of tea, placing it on top of its respective saucer with a clink . "She's currrently in Eientei, a mansion deep inside a bamboo thicket. To be precise, Hirasawa-san is now in Gensokyo."

"G-Gensokyo? I'm sure it's my first time hearing that place."

Ritsu was getting more confused as she tried to process that information in her head. "Is this some kind of a freaking mind game? No offense, but I find this dimension crap unbelievable."

Yukari dismissed the drummer's claim with a wave of her hand, her expression remained unchanged. "I'm afraid not. I only have a question to ask of you though: Do you want to see your friend or not?"

Ritsu was mildly fazed at the response of the gap youkai. "O-Of course, you don't have to ask..."

"Hm, very well..."

With a snap of her fingers, a large gap opened up in front of the room's blackboard. Everyone except the keyboardist opened their eyes widely in astonishment with a bit of fear.

"W-What is that?" Mio nervously asked as she tried to control her voice. "It looks like some sort of portal."

"I forgot to tell you that Yakumo-san can manipulate boundaries. Thus, she could use her dimensional gaps to transfer things almost anywhere." explained Tsumugi. "It's a very unique ability, don't you think?"

No one responded as the others tried to absorb what they saw just now. Yukari was slightly amused in their reaction. Probably any outsider would be taken aback in such a simple act by the gap youkai.

"I guess that it's not a secret anymore for being a youkai. Not that I intend to hide it but there you have it," said Yukari with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Are you telling us that you're a youkai? Youkai don't even exist!" Ritsu exclaimed as if she just heard the impossible. "This is insane!"

"If they don't exist, then, can you please explain what I did just now?"

An awkward silence filled the room, only to be broken once again by Yukari.

"I'm not here to prove youkai's existence. It's up to you if you would believe or not. It's all the same in the end anyway."

"I guess that's probable...for now," said Ritsu in a low voice.

"So, that hole is actually a portal to the dimension you're referring to?" Azusa asked as she regained her calm. "

"Precisely. That's why I'm here in the first place."

Another person opened the club room's door. From her face alone, they could tell that she spent a lot of sleepless nights. Exhaustion and anxiety emanated from her as if those shackled her for a long time. Tsumugi welcomed her with a sincere smile.

"Did...I make it in time?"

"Yes. We're waiting for you."

"Ui? What are you doing here?" asked Ritsu. "More importantly, are you alright? You looked like you run in a damn marathon or something!"

"I ran all the way here when Tsumugi-senpai called me awhile back." Ui said in between her shallow breaths. "I have to finish the chores and..."

"R-Relax first, Ui. Have a sit," Mio said as she invited Ui to sit to the last empty chair while Azusa quickly stood up and fetched a glass of water for her senpai's sister.

"Tsumugi-senpai...Is it true? We're going to visit my sister?"

Tsumugi confirmed the question with a single nod. "Yes. I'm glad you made it."

Ui's face suddenly brightened with renewed spirit as she was finally given the chance to visit her sister. She hugged the keyboardist warmly as tears rolled down her cheeks in unparalleled happiness.

"T-Thank you, Mugi-senpai. I'm really looking forward for this day..."

"Don't cry now. Yui-chan won't be happy seeing you like that..."

"Here," Azusa handed over the glass of water. "I'm excited to see Yui-senpai too. It seemed like months already passed..."

"Also, Nodoka-senpai can't go with us today," Ui continued, "but she made these for onee-chan." She lifted up a basket containing said snacks.

"While we're at it, how about we tell Sawa-chan too?" Ritsu suggested, crossing her arms. "She needs to know this too."

Tsumugi gave the drummer a small frown. "I've already checked the faculty room earlier, but she's not there. I also sent a text message, but it seems she's quite busy at the moment."

"Eh? Is her work really that important than her students? I hope that we're not just her _dress up dolls_."

"Of course she does care for us. She might be working on something else." Tsumugi clasped her hands as happiness invaded her once more. "Let's go visit our friend, shall we?"

* * *

><p>So far, her stay in Eientei wasn't dull despite of nearly experiencing death itself. It had been a week since she was sent to the care of Yagokoro Eirin by the gap youkai herself. It appeared like a month already passed with all of the inexplicable inputs she had received, starting from the day she met Yakumo Yukari. Thankfully, half of the bandages on her body were already removed, thanks to the powerful medicines and special treatment of the Lunarian pharmacist. There were still sharp pains here and there. Her legs mostly received the most punishment from the accident which required more time.<p>

The healing process was unbelievably fast which could easily discourage the outside world's top-notch doctors and technology, as expected for the woman who made the Hourai Elixir. In the process, Eirin had to sacrifice some of her complicated medicines only to be used during emergencies and the like, not to mention that the ingredients of those drugs were very rare. She didn't feel any regret to use them for an outsider. Yukari wanted the girl to live and she did what was told.

Yui was frequently visited by her new friend. A small girl with bunny ears named Inaba Tewi. The youkai rabbit was well-known to bear good fortune when found. Of course, finding her to have a fraction of her luck won't be that easy since she spent most of her time in the bamboo forest surrounding the mansion. Tewi was an earth rabbit but she also lived in the mansion and sometimes helped in the chores and other errands to be done with the other youkai rabbits.

Tewi seemed to be interested on their new patient who was an outsider and a friendly one too. Although, explaining some the basic stuff in Gensokyo to an outsider would be difficult. It couldn't be helped anyway; things in their place worked way too different.

She also learned a few stuff about those strange people she met so far. Yukari was responsible of maintaining the barrier separating Gensokyo to the other. She wondered how would that be possible but she didn't need to bother herself finding a logical explanation about it. After all, she already witnessed the nifty ability of the youkai who could travel almost anywhere and anytime. Ran Yakumo, a fox youkai and Yukari's shikigami visited her and delivered the guitar without any scratches. She was still baffled by the fact that her guitar was safe. Then again, maybe Yukari fixed it for her. All that matters was she could continue playing with her beloved instrument.

Yui also met Reisen Udongein Inaba who assists Eirin in her work. She was the only moon rabbit living in the mansion and an apprentice of Eirin. She also helped the pharmacist in their daily work although sometimes complain about her enormous workload from dawn till dusk but she diligently follows her master's orders. She only wished now that her other rabbit companions would cooperate a bit with her, especially Tewi.

All in all, they were a very weird bunch but unexpectedly kind to others, despite of being youkai themselves.

Outside, some of the youkai rabbits were happily playing with a beach ball, reminding Yui of the upcoming season. She felt that the meal that she had just now was enough to fill her in for about three days or probably more, as if the food had some kind of drug mixed in as well. Truth to be told, she was greatly enjoying the food in the mansion. Most of the time, Reisen was the one making their meals in the mansion, sometimes with the assistance of Tewi or the other rabbits. Eirin would also whip up something new when the opportunity allows her. Tewi once said to her that it won't hurt to check the food twice for any signs of conspiracy if the Brain of the Moon made it herself.

"What are you thinking?" Tewi asked as she tried to read the thoughts of the guitarist with a skeptical look. "Are the rabbits bothering you?"

Yui gently shook her head. "Not really. I just thought that I left a lot of things outside and I need to catch up as soon as I heal."

"Really? You sure have a lot of things to do, huh?"

"Not entirely busy though. We still have time to sit back and drink tea."

Despite of the comforts provided, she wanted to go back to the outside world already. Given her better condition than before, she could be discharged out of Eientei since yesterday. She already missed the Light Music Club and Ui. She already missed going to school and other places they usually hang out together. She already missed having tea time and practicing afterschool. Lastly, she already missed a lot of lessons and other school activities and their exams were just around the corner now.

The last part made her cringe as sweat started to appear on her face. She shook her head and told herself that everything would be fine if Mio would willingly teach her.

"Uhm...are you okay?"

Yui waved her hands as she spoke anxiously. "I...I just remembered something important, that's all."

"How about visit us sometimes if you're free or you just plain like it? Obviously, that applies after you're healed."

"I would. Yukari-chan did gave us this weird portal to here."

Suddenly, Tewi had the urge to slap her face. "Isn't that a bit dangerous?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Humans will end up as youkai food easily unless they have something to defend themselves. There are rumors that Yukari would sometimes put outsiders here in Gensokyo for fun. It would be also dangerous the other side around. If some random youkai could find that gap, it might get in your world and eat every human in its sight! Then the poor guy would blow up due to overeating!"

The guitarist opened her mouth in realization. "That would be a problem then?"

"Of course, haven't you given thought of that?"

"Yakumo-san seemed to be okay with that though."

The door slid open and revealed the Brain of the Moon herself, carrying bottles that seemed to contain medicine.

"Oh, master. What are you doing here?" Tewi asked in her usual bright face.

Eirin rose an eyebrow. "What kind of question is that? I'm here to check my patient."

"Yes, yes...you don't need to look at me like that..."

The Lunarian examined her patient with a quick glance before smiling. "Anyways. I'd like you to try my new, special medicine I was working on for almost a month..."

"Huh? A new, special medicine? Is that effective?"

"Of course! Eirin's medicines are always effective!" Tewi replied. "Some cases are to be considered also like mutations and other stuff like..."

Eirin continued as if she heard nothing from the youkai rabbit. "Drinking this would greatly boost your body's regenerative ability temporarily, comparable to youkai and other similar creatures." She stared at the bottle's contents closely with a wide grin. "Although, this won't be particularly the one mending your wounds or broken bones and you'll still have to wait until the medicine takes effect and do its job."

"That type of medicine is kinda different from the previous ones. Why do you make them just now?" asked Tewi.

"Well, I'm sure you're aware that most of our customers are from the human village. Making medicines for humans seemed to be the better choice since youkai doesn't need to worry much about their health, given their constitution."

"That's true."

"Is that sweet?" Yui asked as the lunarian raised an eyebrow. She had tasted a couple of medicines for her injuries. She could only remember the medicine, according to the pharmacist, that helps to quickly mend broken bones and tissues which she must take three times a day. As expected for most drugs, she didn't like them. If the medicines were sweet, customers wouldn't have to worry about its taste. In fact, they might find taking medicines enjoyable too.

Tewi shook her head in response as she waved a finger to the brunette. "No, no, Yui. The better question should be: Is that safe, doctor?"

"Well...it's still lacking in the taste department but I added some sweet berries to counteract the bitterness," the lunarian replied in a soft tone. She considered the taste of her medicines once but no one actually complained about it. Maybe her customers thought that medicines were supposed to taste bitter? Or maybe the best medicines were believed to be always bitter?

"Think twice before you drink that shady concoction, Yui!"

After a split-second glare to the youkai rabbit, Eirin said with a tone of confidence, "I assure you that the medicine is safe. Don't mind the rabbit beside you."

Yui looked at the mixture of purple for some seconds before drinking the contents. She couldn't describe what kind of ingredients Eirin added. She didn't like medicines, especially bitter ones but there was no room for being picky in her current state. Now that she thought more about the Lunarian's medicines, they would be considered as a miracle drug or something close to that to the outside world.

After the last swig of the medicine, her face went blank and the other two attentively waited for any reaction from her. "It's plain...but has this slight bitter aftertaste..."

"Hm...I see. Feeling anything different now?" asked Eirin expectantly.

"You should add something sweet in it!"

"E-Eh? What do you mean by that?"

"Like adding sugar and other sugary things in the medicine? That's a good idea!" Tewi said with newfound enthusiasm. "It will raise sales too!"

"To be frank, you're my very first patient who questioned the taste of my medicines. You really are something special..."

_Maybe the first who's bold enough to question the taste of your medicine,_ Tewi thought as she quietly hid her laughter. _Imagine that? Hirasawa-san, you're officially good at these!_

"Wait," said Yui with a curious stare to the lunarian. "This one is already tested, right?"

"Nope, you're the very first who tested that. For the record, the first human who volunteered to test my new medicine."

She gulped in her sudden tension, hearing those words with a grin from Eirin. "A-Ah...that would be an honor then..."

"You'll feel the effect eventually. I guarantee that most of my medicines have no harmful side-effects."

"Most? Do you mean there are some which are actually harmful?"

Tewi answered with a nod. "She sometimes experiment with things and..."

Eirin coughed once before she continued as Tewi puffed her cheeks in the sudden interruption. "Those aside, it would still take you for almost a week to fully recover with the aid of that medicine. As you know, those injuries that you incurred usually take more than a year or more. There are even times that a person can no longer walk in cases like yours. I'm not scaring you in that but you should be more cautious in things around you, or I'll be seeing you walking towards the Sanzu River someday in the future. Accidents, true, they are somehow unavoidable but it wouldn't hurt to be prepared."

"R-Really? A-Ah...that's fast. Thank you. I will keep that in mind."

Eirin smiled once again. "I'm just doing my job. No need for thanking me."

Tewi suggested, "Ah...so what do we do now? Hey, about play your shiny instrument!"

The youkai rabbit was right. Her guitar became shinier than before as if giving off a faint aura. Did something happen to it while she was unconscious in the past few days? She stroked the guitar's neck with the familiar feeling that she knew for a long time. She embarrassedly looked back at the youkai rabbit.

"'ll try to remember the songs first..."

"No rush. Maybe that accident messed your head that much, huh?"

"Maybe..."

There was a sudden chill before a familiar gap opened up in the far end of the room.

"Ah, it's about time she visits you, Hirasawa-san," said Eirin as if she was already expected what would come to them.

"Good morning, Yagokoro Eirin," Yukari greeted as she emerged from the gap. "Perhaps this would be a pleasant day for a visit, isn't it?"

"I wish you could use the mansion's front door once when you visit," said Eirin. "Aside from that, good morning as well. It's almost noon though."

"I'm sure you don't mind bringing other people here." The gap youkai stepped aside away from the tear in space behind her. "It's not like you have other choices now..."

"Go on. As you can see. I'm not stopping anyone."

"Very well then."

"A-Azu-nyan?" uttered the brunette as she saw the pigtailed girl stepping out of the gap.

"Y-Yui-senpai? Is that you?" asked Azusa, her heart pounded faster as she recognize her senior's voice. "I-It's really you!"

On impulse, Yui attempted to lunge out of her bed to give Azusa's usual dose of hugs but stopped midway as almost all points of her body protested with a surge of pain, reminding her of the fractures she got. Eirin winced a little but not entirely concerned whether the girl broke or dislocated something.

"Oi, are you an idiot? You're still messed up!" Tewi angrily scolded, pulling Yui back against a pillow with more force than necessary.

Azusa quickly rushed to the side of the bed, her face showing genuine concern as she looked at Yui. "Y-Yui-senpai, don't do that again, okay?"

"Geez, if you act like that, you'll be spending an additional week here!" added the youkai rabbit as she crossed her arms. "Help yourself or you'll end up staying here forever."

Not too long after Azusa, Ui and the others followed. "Onee-chan? Y-You're...you're..."

Without second doubts, Ui rushed to her sister to give her a tight hug as if Yui was gone for a whole year or more, tears overflowing on her eyes. She felt that the gods finally answered her prayers. "O-Onee-chan, I...I can't believe this...!".

"U-Ui...I'm glad to see you...!"

"...I'm so worried." Ui sniffled as she embraced her sister, taking away all of her worry. "It has been so long, I...I thought that you're..."

Yui gently wiped the tears of her younger sister as she smiled heartwarmingly. "Don't say that. I won't leave anyone, I promise."

Mio, on the other hand, was very relieved and about to shed a tear. "Thank goodness."

"I guess everything's fine in the end after all," Ritsu whispered to herself. "_What am I thinking?_"

"Where's Nodoka-chan?"

"She couldn't come for today," Ui said in a disappointed tone. "But she promised that she will be with us next time."

"I smell nice. What's that?" Yui asked as she pointed at the basket.

"Nodoka-senpai made snacks for you. See?"

"Yay! Thank you, Nodoka-chan!"

From the back, Yukari couldn't help to smile to herself at the scene. She was not the type who would help someone on a whim but she felt like accomplishing more than she expected. The sweets of Tsumugi was the main contributor for her enthusiasm though.

"...Is she allowed to go back home now?" asked Ui expectantly.

"As much as you girls wanted her back home, she still needs to stay here for another week or two under my observation. We can never tell what might possibly happen next in the next few days," Eirin informed.

"Yeah, just like what she did earlier," added Tewi. "It's quite a pain watching over this girl."

Ui stared at the lunarian for some seconds before she spoke again, "Are you the one who healed my sister?"

"You should thank Yukari for the convincing part. I only did what I know best," said Eirin bluntly. "Also, it would be a hassle for Yukari to fetch Hirasawa-san if some problems in the future arises. You can leave the caretaking to us, especially Tewi here. I can assure you that."

Ui's enthusiasm fell down as she somehow felt that Yui would finally return to their house. "I see..."

"Well? How about it, Ui? We could wait for another week, right~?" said Yui, still with her customary smile.

"I think it would be best for Yui-senpai to stay here," said the pigtailed girl. "Once she's completely fine, we don't have to worry anymore..."

"Y-Yes. I understand." Ui turned to Eirin and bowed gratefully to the lunarian. "Thank you for helping my sister..."

Ritsu shrugged as she let out a noticeable sigh. "A-Ah well...sorry about that Mugi. I guess I got carried away there."

Tsumugi smiled in response without any form of contempt. "I'm sorry too. You have the rights to be angry after what happened..."

Tewi was rather amazed and confused at the same time in the surprise visit. For the record, that was one of a few times she saw patients being visited by more than just one individual. "You sure brought a lot of people here, Yukari."

Yukari smirked as she made another gap for her to sit on.

"Now that I looked around here, what is this place exactly? Some kind of a convention or something?" asked Ritsu as she glanced around. The whole of the room was simply decorated yet it will provide the comforts of your home. Furniture were mostly made of wood and appeared to be older than it looks. The traditional style made them feel like they went a couple of decades back. From outside the window, they could see the surrounding greenery, particularly bamboo along with the mist floating about even it was already noon. Even so, they couldn't help to be comfortable in such a bland place.

"Convention? What's that?" Tewi asked as she tilted her head to the side. "It's something good, right?"

"I mean, why are you wearing that?" Ritsu pointed at Tewi's fluffy rabbit ears. "Are you a cosplayer or anything like that?"

"For you to know, these ears are genuinely real! I'm not 'wearing' it! Isn't these already obvious?"

"Heh. Don't play dumb on me," Ritsu said as she stepped closer to Tewi, her hands twitching in curiousity. "Lemme get a closer look on your ears then?"

"W-What are you trying to do? Stay back or you'll spend the rest of your life in bad luck! More rotten and disgusting that you could ever imagine!"

"Oh...her name is Inaba Tewi, the representative of the youkai rabbits living around here," said Yui, introducing her newest friend. "Isn't she cute?"

"A-A youkai rabbit? It's hard to find the likes of you outside of Gensokyo," Tsumugi said with a shaky voice, apparently excited in the revelation.

"Are you telling us that this girl is a youkai?" Ritsu asked. "Don't be ridiculous! There's no such thing like..."

Tewi cut her off as she folded her arms, unimpressed. "Yes. I'm a youkai rabbit. Problem?"

"I don't even...I will not buy that nonsense!"

A swift realization went in Tewi's mind, reaching to a conclusion. "What with that reaction anyway? Are we already extinct outside?"

Tsumugi recalled her encounters with different youkai in the past. "I couldn't say that. This is my first time seeing a humanoid youkai rabbit. Maybe a few of those ordinary ones could be a youkai in disguise. I'm not sure."

"I dunno what to respond to that. There are tons of us here if you might ask."

"Oh, really? Can I take one home?" The keyboardist asked.

"Absolutely not," said Tewi as a glint flickered on her eyes. "You have to pay for them."

"Ah, that's not a problem then." Tsumugi's smile went wider. "How much do they cost?"

Tewi was somewhat stunned in the keyboardist's response. "H-Hey, I'm just kidding."

Another voice echoed clearly as if it was almost heard in the whole mansion, grabbing everyone's attention. "Reisen? Tewi? Where is everyone?"

The faint footsteps in the hallway became audible as it went nearer and stopped as the person already reached the door. "Eirin, Eirin! Are you there?"

"Yes. Come in."

The door slid open and a girl with long black hair greeted as she rubbed her eyes. "Ah, good morning everyone."

"Kaguya, it's already afternoon," reminded Eirin with another sigh.

"R-Really?"

Kaguya gasped as she stared at them, her eyes widened in shock. She was not expecting to see a lot of people gathered in the patient's room. Her face turned crimson, realizing she hasn't changed her night clothes. "Uhm. I see that you got your hands full Eirin. E-Excuse me."

The black-haired girl, still wearing her sleeping garments, quickly slid the door close as everybody exchanged looks. It seemed like it was nothing important to begin with.

_I never saw her before. Who is she?_ thought Yui as she tried to recall the names Tewi mentioned ealier. _Oh, I remember now! She's the princess of this mansion!_

It looked like the manor's princess was a bit laid-back as well. Maybe it was just an impression Yui got.

"That settles it then?" whispered Yukari, hovering near the keyboardist with a brighter expression than earlier. "Well, about the sweets..."

"Ah, yes. As soon as we go back," replied Tsumugi.

"I guess this is goodbye for now? I'm afraid this would be our only visit until she regained her normal condition," the gap youkai reminded.

"That means you won't give us another trip here?" asked Ritsu.

Yukari paused for some seconds, her fan covering half of her face. "If I feel like it."

"As expected from you, Yukari," remarked Eirin. "Let's have tea before you go back. I presume this would be the last time I'll be seeing you girls."

"Do you despise me or you just simply don't want my presence here?" asked Yukari.

"I'm referring to the girls, Yakumo Yukari."

"I figured that, Yagokoro Eirin. That was just a mere test."

Ritsu pondered the offer for a moment. "I guess it won't hurt, right?"

"Ritsu! We just had tea!" Mio protested as they were about to take another round of tea.

"Just like our usual days. Besides, it's tea from youkai this time."

"Very well. Tewi, could you please?" requested Eirin as she pleadingly patted the head of the rabbit girl. "Tea won't prepare themselves for us."

"...Ugh, If only Reisen was here."

* * *

><p>The rest of the afternoon was unexpectedly hot with few fluffy clouds floating in the sky. After they parted with the others, Yukari and Tsumugi were now heading to the bakery where she would get the food she needed for the bargain. The eyes of people around followed them, particularly on the gap youkai herself as the two walked through the sidewalk. Of course, wearing something very eye-catching in public would really give off that impression. Yukari would leisurely fan herself as of custom and sometimes twirling her parasol in her other hand. She didn't seem to mind the others looking at them with wonder. Perhaps it was pretty much similar every time that she will use her gaps to go somewhere.<p>

Tsumugi definitely felt lighter, especially after seeing Ui humming to herself happily as she went back home. After Yui's recovery, they finally resume their lives and to play together as a band once again as if nothing happened tragic.

"Today's pleasantly clear. Is it because summer's near?" The blonde keyboardist muttered as she stared at the sky, protecting her eyes with her hand from the sunlight.

"It's a good thing that I always have my parasol with me so that the sun won't harm my skin."

"That's surprisingly odd coming from a youkai like you. But, I'm quite certain that your parasol has more uses other than that."

Tsumugi walked in front of the gap youkai and stare at her clothes curiously. "Yakumo-san, you really like wearing those kind of clothes. Everyone's staring at you."

"Well, something wrong with that? They should mind their own matters. I don't think that this place has any sort of dress code."

"That is true, but you might end up attracting bad people with those extravagant clothes."

She let out a small chuckle as she dismissed the claim of the keyboardist with a gesture of her fan.

It didn't take them much time to reach the bakery and without second thoughts, they immediately went inside as the heat would totally give them a headache. The bakery was a personal favorite of Tsumugi. She was also well-acquainted to the owner of the place who would sometimes treat her when she was just dropping by.

The interior was painted dark red and black with chandeliers hanging on the walls, illuminating the place with a faint glow as if it was already nighttime. White thick curtains covered every window to prevent sunlight's entry. Chairs and tables of lavish detail and quality were neatly arranged. Ornamental plants and flowers also filled the place as a complement. The western ambiance was very comfortable, making their customers to come back as often as possible. It appeared that the bakery turned out to be a café just from the setting inside. The waitresses were scattered around the place, taking orders from their customers and bringing in trays of delectable tea and dessert.

"My, it is sure fancy here. Oh, it's a bit dark too. I get this sudden feeling that a vampire is living here," said Yukari as she looked around while Tsumugi just giggled in the gap youkai's comment.

"Vampires?" asked Tsumugi as she was reminded of another creature she was hoping to meet. "Are there vampires living in Gensokyo?"

"Hmm. Yes, although they're originally outsiders. I advise to bring with you more patience and will to survive when you happen to meet them."

"Is that from your own experience?"

"Feel free to guess but they're not as bad as you might think."

"Ah...Kotobuki-san. Welcome," greeted a man in his late forties lively as his eyes landed on the two, more especially to the eccentric woman wearing an eccentric dress he never saw before. "...I see that you have company. Are you here for your order?"

"Good afternoon," the blonde keyboardist began. "Yes, I could have them delivered to our place but I think she would like to see your place personally." She gestured to the gap youkai beside her, who in turn slightly bowed as courtesy.

"Is that so? Please, have a sit while you wait for the food to be arranged." The man pointed at an unoccupied table near them. The two sat across each other and talked as they waited for the packaging to be finished. After a minute, the same man approached them with two steaming cups of tea on a tray.

"Uhm...I didn't order tea," said Tsumugi, quite embarrassed in the offer. _Actually, we already had tea a couple of times today..._

The man slowly shook his head in response as he placed the teacups in front of them. "Don't worry...it's a pleasure of mine to serve you."

Yukari didn't seem to mind the number of cups of tea she had since morning as she smiled a thankful smile to the man in suit. "My, thank you."

"You're welcome, madam. It's good to see one of Kotobuki-san's friends. Excuse me for a moment." The man left as he went to accompany other newcomers, leading them to empty tables and latter to be served with a delectable sweets and tea.

"He always works this hard, especially at this hour..."

"I'm certain you claim that this establishment is for making pastries and cakes. It somewhat looks like a café," Yukari inquired as she held her teacup and took a sip of its contents. "My, this tea is good."

"Actually, both. But this place is more of a café, really."

"Is that so? A very convenient place then. Now that I remembered, you and your friends sure enjoy having tea time every day."

"Ahm? How can you tell? Are you spying on us for that long?"

"Not really. You have that cupboard for those expensive tea sets on that room, yes?"

"The sweets that we eat in the club room are usually given by our family's friends. Now that we have tea time on a daily basis, I started to buy more from time to time as well, mostly coming from here."

"Your family is quite important then. If you offered me that many sweets in the first place, so I can safely assume that you are more prosperous than I imagined. Plus, you act refined to be just a random commoner around these parts, or maybe it's just me."

"There's nothing really special about that."

"If your family possess much wealth, why not live like one? From what I see, you seem to live...in a very normal way. We could be riding in a vehicle of yours instead of walking."

"I just want to live my life as everyone does. The simpler, the better. Besides, this place isn't that far from our school."

"Not even a personal assistant? Or someone that will offer you protection?" asked Yukari. "Even I have someone to act as my extra hand."

Tsumugi simply replied, "I told my father to not worry about my personal security but I know that someone always follows me the moment I step out of our house to school or anywhere else that I go. Well, we do have some people that works for us at home but I only ask for their help if I really needed assistance."

"Since you're the master, why not talk to the person following you?"

"They're following my father's orders, not mine. Still, I'm quite thankful that he allowed me to go out the house more often than before."

Somehow, Yukari was taken aback from Tsumugi's answers. She knew well that a person with the same caliber as the blonde keyboardist would always utilize and cling to material wealth and power since birthright, at least on what she know to most outsiders. Similar to Yukari's case; she might wear flashy clothes and brings with her the air of royalty but she was more inclined to live a simple life.

"Maybe you should tell me where your house is, so that I could visit you sometimes. I can't just pop out in the music room everytime, yes?"

Her back stiffened as if she heard something absurd just now. In a stuttering manner, Tsumugi replied, "A-Ah...you can't...see, my house always caters events and other things...in other words, the place is always busy so..."

Nothing was said afterwards. The keyboardist tried to avoid eye contact with the gap youkai, glancing to her side before lowering her head in contempt for what she just said. Yukari didn't need to know further that she mistakenly hit something uncomfortable for Tsumugi. After a few seconds of consideration, she decided not to cross the line this time, for the sake of the girl in front of her.

"I see. I won't force you if you don't want to..."

To the gap youkai's surprise, Tsumugi managed to response, "Besides, you can't go inside even if you didn't ask my permission. You might hurt yourself in trying."

_Is that so? You have intrigued me again..._

"Oh, Why not?" Yukari asked as if it didn't reach the desired answer. She was expecting that the blonde girl would meekly avoid the question but it was exactly the opposite.

"The whole house is purified and heavily protected against most youkai, especially of your kind. Also, unlike me, most of the people inside are not fond of youkai and will exterminate one on sight."

"Well, why am I not surprised with that? Are you from a line of youkai exterminators?"

"Not exactly. W-We should talk about the sweets instead..."

_Dropping the matter too soon? _Yukari smiled as she closed her eyes._ I'll remember that._

After she has gotten herself comfortable, Tsumugi spoke again, "Well, about our deal, I can't possibly give the whole of those sweets to you for today."

"Ah, you're right. Why didn't I think of that? It will all just go to waste."

"I also considered some other alternatives. Unless you have the power to prevent food spoilage or you would diligently come here on a daily basis to retrieve them, I would rather give you the sweets twice a week instead. It's not that you're in a hurry in finishing all of it in one sitting."

Yukari laughed quietly with a fan on her mouth. "Yes. That would be the optimal choice. Maybe I would ask someone to fetch the food for me instead. Also, I need to ask one last thing..."

"Yes?"

The mistress of boundaries seemed curious to ask this particular question. She was quite reluctant at first for bringing it up to the person who was bringing those high-class sweets but her interest didn't waver up until that moment. She had to ask anyway. To think of it, Tsumugi could also use those previous snack-looting of Yukari against her if anything goes wrong. "Are you still upset about me sneaking some sweets for myself? Your friend seemed to be infuriated in those days."

"Like I said, I already knew you were around from the beginning. Although I'm not quite sure what kind of person was behind all that. More or less, curiosity got me and played along after that. I haven't seen a youkai like you for a long time."

Yukari allowed herself to open up a smile once again. "What is this? Am I a rare species of youkai now?"

"It's rare to see a youkai these days. I'm always intrigued to go and know more about them. You are very different from the ones I met before. Your ability is fearsome to the point that you could easily surpass anyone."

"For your case, you have the power of clairvoyance, if I'm not mistaken. Can you tell me if there are youkai currently inside this fine establishment?"

"Clairvoyance? N-Not really. The reason why I easily recognized your presence because you carry a different aura from the other youkai. I guess everybody else would feel the same, even Yui." Tsumugi closed her eyes in deep focus as she tried to detect any unusual beings around them. Yukari looked at the girl patiently as she sipped tea again.

Some more seconds later, Tsumugi slowly opened her eyes as if she just woke up from a quick nap. "Four...excluding you. I'm not quite accurate and there might be someone else that I missed."

"Interesting. You should develop that ability. It will prove to be useful."

"But it seems that the other two followed us all the way here. I can't pinpoint exactly where they are now but they're around here somewhere."

"Two of them, you say? I wonder..."

The man in suit returned after serving the order of a nearby table. "I assume that they're done by now."

"That was faster than I've expected," remarked Yukari.

"We already prepared most of it before your arrival. Where are we going to deliver those, Kotobuki-san?"

"Ah. I know just the place."

"You do?" Tsumugi asked with a hint of curiosity. She clearly knew that Yukari only lived in Gensokyo, unless she had a vacation house somewhere.

"Please deliver them to a shrine priestess named Hakurei Reimu living not far from here."

The man blinked as he asked the gap youkai. "Particularly?"

"Hakurei Shrine."

"I don't remember a 'Hakurei Shrine' around this parts. Have you mistaken madam?"

Yukari placed her cup on the saucer as another smile formed on her face. "If the preparations are done, I'll show you a shortcut to the shrine. But before that, excuse me for a moment."

Yukari's hand went to a pocket of her dress and revealed an plain-looking cellphone; the layout and design was very similar to the normal ones but not necessarily the same. She pressed some buttons before she placed it next to her ears. The device rang and soon a high-pitched cry of a girl in pain went out of the speakers loud enough to be heard by Tsumugi and other people near them. Yukari retained a straight face in the small turmoil as she waited for a response.

"Sorry, Y-Yukari-sama? Do you need something?"

"Ah...Ran, I hope you're not busy. I'd like you to do something for me, it's not that important though."

"Chen played with some fairies not too long ago but ended up being injured, mostly bruises on her body. Fortunately, it was nothing serious to be concerned about. That aside, what are your orders?"

"I'll be sending the provisions to the Hakurei Shrine, I want you to go there and bring them back to our house. Kotobuki-san would be giving us those every week."

Another squeal followed, again catching attention around them. Yukari seemed not to be bothered by the interruptions as she maintained a straight face.

"C-Chen? Stop...scratching me! I-I'm sorry...Where will you send the items again?"

"Hakurei Shrine."

"W-Why do you need to transfer them to the shrine maiden?"

"I feel like it..."

"Yukari-sama..."

The gap youkai effectively closed every doubt of the shikigami in the firm reply, "The delivery man wouldn't be happy if I will send him to our house instead. I figured that it would be appropriate if a human will receive them."

There was a short pause for the shikigami's part to ponder on what her master said before she spoke again, "U-Understood. You're not coming back yet?

"Ah~ Just a bit more. I won't be long here. Also, remember to share some to Reimu as well."

"Take your time. I'll be going now."

"Don't let your shikigami wander off anywhere again. It will save us from further trouble."

The gap youkai pressed another button to terminate the call and returned it to the same pocket while Tsumugi looked at her skeptically.

"Where did you get a phone like that? It looks like Gensokyo is more advance that I thought."

"Ah, you mean this? A certain someone gave this to me. It's convenient that I could still call my shikigami even from here," explained Yukari. "Now that everything's set, shall we move on?"

* * *

><p>The shrine's yard became a common workplace of the Shrine Maiden of Paradise when she was not out for youkai extermination or anything considered important for her. She usually spent her days in a carefree manner; drinking tea as she contemplate the serene surrounding like she never lived there and sweeping falling leaves from the inconsiderate trees around the shrine's perimeter, repeating the process after some hours have passed as if she was only waiting for the leaves to cover the ground again. From time to time, her friends would visit, intrude, or just to plainly bug her if the mood strikes them. Surprisingly enough, she didn't make much effort to chase them away from her home. In fact, she was quite thankful that someone still visits and kept her out of the monotony if only for just an hour or two.<p>

Today was particularly a bright, hot day. She finally finished piling up all of the leaves she gathered so far. It might be a dull way to kill time but she was already accustomed to it. She hoped that a random person would cause an incident soon or someone would give her a job to exterminate a troublesome youkai. She could use some action now.

_I'm quite glad that Suika won't be around for awhile. She nearly drank all of the sake in the storeroom the other night. Now that I think of it...why did she need to drink other's sake if she has that gourd?_

...

_Nothing to do at the moment._

_Hm...maybe a cup of tea would be nice..._

She went inside the shrine to brew some fresh tea. During her visit to the antique and second-hand shop, Kourindou, she got several tea leaves in small packets from the shop owner saying that it was given to him by the gap youkai while delivering batteries for his outside world merchandise. Reimu knew that Yukari always bring weird stuff to the shop when she didn't have nothing to do. All she knew that the two have mutual benefit in their somewhat shady collaboration.

The relaxing scent of tea quickly dispersed around her, effectively releasing stress from her shoulders.

_Wow. The aroma of this tea is very different compared to my usual tea. Where did Yukari got this anyway?_

… … _..._

_Huh? What's this feeling?_

_I feel like someone's going to visit me today. I guess making some extra wouldn't hurt..._

After preparing her afternoon snack, she went out to the porch again to sit on her usual relaxation spot. She nearly dropped the tray as a truck appeared out of the blue in front of the shrine. A man with a cap went out of the large vehicle as she approached the shrine maiden who just stood there, dumbfounded. She could also tell that the man was confused himself as well, trying his best to remain calm.

"Uhm, delivery for Hakurei Reimu-san..."

"_God damn it, Yukari..._"

* * *

><p>After staying in the luxurious café, the two wandered around without any particular destination in mind as requested by the youkai of boundaries before heading back home. Although Yukari sometimes spent some of her time in the outside her world, there were still new things coming in that fascinated her, given the rapid technological advancement of humans.<p>

As they leisurely walked by the rows of shops aligned, Tsumugi was somewhat confused in the directions the gap youkai told the delivery man earlier, knowing that the Hakurei Shrine was situated on the boundary of Gensokyo and the Outside world.

_...Turn right to the last street until you reach a tunnel. The shrine is located on the other side if you just followed the path._

_Huh? The shrine? What do you mean?_

_The shrine is the only standing structure in the area, surrounded by large trees. I am sure that you won't miss it._

_Oh, the only way back is through the same tunnel. I wish you good luck._

Unless, Yukari would lead the delivery van to an enormous gap of hers...

She could only assume that Yukari was well aware of her actions and let her do what seemed to be appropriate.

"So...where are we going next?" asked Tsumugi as they crossed the street. "I'm quite anxious about the other two following us around."

"If they're planning to threaten us, that will be a serious mistake for their side. On the contrary, I find this quite amusing actually," said Yukari. "Anyways, I have this feeling that they will give their cover soon."

"I hope so..."

"I haven't seen this area. By all means, do you mind if you lead the way?"

"Oh, why not? There's this ice cream parlor we sometimes visit."

"It's been awhile since I had that dessert."

* * *

><p>The brown-haired girl was getting more and more impatient as she followed the two who were leisurely taking their time walking around. Her friend, Shimizu Kasumi, was just waiting for their next move from behind, scribbling something on a small notebook she always carried around. Whenever an idea comes into her mind, regardless of the place and time, she would just get her notebook and write them down.<p>

Soon, their targets entered a shop which made them hold their position and wait for a golden chance.

"Eh? First, a café. Now, an ice cream parlor?" Amiya Hiromi said as she gritted her teeth, slowly losing her short-fused patience. She was not used to be getting stealthy where she could just charge in any way possible. "Does she really like sweet stuff now?"

"Hey, Hiromi?"

"What now?"

"You're not just giving up that easily, don't you?"

"Of course, I don't want to miss this! What do you expect me to do now?"

"I dunno, find a part-time job or something productive? Seriously, pay your our bills for a change!"

Thinking that the two might spent another hour inside, Hiromi came up with an idea. She slid her goggles onto her eyes and began scanning the parlor's interior using its infrared function. "Ah, I thought that they're the only customers inside."

"What do you expect? That place is quite popular. I tried eating there once and their sundae is quite addicting..."

"Maybe this should do the trick..." said Hiromi as she removed the goggles and focused her vision to the building.

Kasumi blinked for a few times as she saw Hiromi's right eye slowly brighten to deep red, a signal that her friend was up to no good again. She just sighed to herself as she couldn't anything to broke the momentum of the girl. A few more seconds made Kasumi drop a sweat as she thought that it might be more than she assumed.

"O-Oi? Are you trying to blow that place off?"

"Ugh, I can't concentrate. Keep it down!" retorted Hiromi, eyes still concentrated in a specific device in the parlor. "This won't damage anything, I can promise you that."

The plan seemed to work as everyone, including the employees, hurriedly went out of the parlor as the fire alarm broke out. Hiromi held her laughter as Kasumi stared back at her friend in disbelief. "W-What did you just..."

"Geez, I just messed up the shop's thermostat!"

"_That same prank again..._"

Hiromi pointed at the pair as she saw them walking again. She couldn't allow herself to miss that chance. "Quick, they're going that way. We'll ambush them the other way around!"

"Also, why are we hiding in this bush if we can't be seen in the first place?" asked Kasumi as she tapped a device attached on her arm. "It makes you twice more of an idiot you are now."

"Optical camouflage has its flaws too, not to mention that it's Yukari-chan we're talking about here!"

Kasumi shrugged as her friend had a point. "Just don't wreck more of my stuff. The lack of materials for almost a month now isn't going to help me or you."

* * *

><p>"And I thought that the store's on fire," said Tsumugi, quite disappointed as they weren't able to buy ice cream. "I have a hunch that it was not just a false alarm."<p>

"Lucky for me to have a parasol for the sprinklers. This happened...for the _second time_ in my case. I must say that it is fascinating for the humans to create such device."

"You seemed like convincing me to have a parasol of my own."

"Oh, but it fits for someone like you. Also, I don't just use my parasol in its conventionally. It does have plenty of uses."

"Speaking from experience, huh? I can only wonder what are the other uses you're referring to."

"Believe me. This parasol served me very well farther than you might think."

"Ha! It's about time you showed up, Yukari-chan!"

Both of them halted as they noticed a girl standing defiantly before them with her hands on her waist. The peculiarity of her clothes was somewhat similar to Yukari but the goggles on her head seemed to ruin the whole of it. On her back what seemed to be a silver steel pole axe with a large puffy ribbon tied just below the blade. Her eyes were full of determination as if she had waited for a very long time for that moment. Yukari and Tsumugi just stood there without uttering a word...

_For two seconds... __Four seconds... __Six seconds... __Eight seconds..._

_W-What's with this awkward silence... _Tsumugi thought as she wasn't sure that she met the brown-haired girl somewhere before. The only thing she knew that the girl was one of the presences who trailed them since they got out of the school. She guessed that Yukari recognize the person who was getting impatient as she began to tap the ground with her foot.

Finally, Tsumugi got the urge to ask. "Uhm...Why did we stop, Yakumo-san?"

"I think we finally found the source of your anxiousness, Kotobuki-san. Well, more like they found us first."

The girl's face became red in embarrassment. "You are suppose to say something, Yukari-chan!"

"I'm quite surprised. You didn't attack without prior warning like you usually do."

Tsumugi just tilted her head and looked at the gap youkai with slight interest. "Yakumo-san, do you know her?"

"Yeah, tell her about my awesomeness, Yukari-chan!"

Yukari stared at the bizarre girl then back to the keyboardist who was still waiting for an answer. "She's Amiya Hiromi. A troublesome, good-for-nothing youkai that could manipulate almost anything machine-related. Fortunately, not a very bright one and tends to break things instead. How's that introduction?"

She shot an angry look to Yukari who just smiled in response. "What did you say? That's just mean!"

"That's a very unique ability," remarked Tsumugi as she nodded to herself. "She seemed like a modern youkai then?"

Yukari returned her gaze to the girl in front. "Hiromi? What do you want now? You better have a good reason for wasting our time."

"Well...I just wanted to play, that's all! What you did the last time was outright cheating!" Hiromi replied then her body shook a little as she remembered being thrown to an almost freezing lake by the gap youkai.

"That is my ability. Then, that will make me a cheater by default, is it not? Why play with a 'cheater' like me if you already know about it?"

"That's the reason why! I will win even if you cheat!"

"Oh, it's that a new toy of yours?" asked the now interested boundary youkai as she finally noticed the brown-haired girl's steel pole axe, somehow shorter than the typical size to match her stature.

"Yep! Kasumi made it for me! Quite cool, isn't it?"

"Now that you mentioned her...where is she?"

"Yakumo-san, she's not alone, right?" asked Tsumugi as she felt another unseen presence nearby. "I mean, it could be..."

"Yes, you're right. Your perception is really outstanding, Kotobuki-san."

"Oh, well...I guess there's no use hiding now."

The two felt movement from under the nearby tree, suggesting that something not visible to the eye was there earlier. The figure had a shadow casted on the ground which was similar of a human as it was standing beside Hiromi. Then, a gray-haired girl appeared with a rather annoyed look on her face, not necessarily because of Yukari. She should be working on something new or continuing a previous project of hers when Hiromi burst into her room saying that the gap youkai appeared again. She sighed nonchalantly before crossing her arms.

"We're not here to play hide and seek, Kasumi."

"I know that."

"It's been awhile, isn't it?" asked Yukari with her enigmatic smile. "A few months back, perhaps? Unfortunately, I lost track."

Kasumi gazed at the eyes of the ancient youkai as she smiled in return. "Yes...quite, don't sweat it. Are you still using the phone that I gave you?"

"It proved to be very useful for me. I am thankful for that."

"I'm quite glad that I could help; just don't charge it with too much magic; it'll explode before you know it. I'm very short on resources now..."

"Is there something amiss?" The youkai of boundaries asked as she felt discontent in the voice of the girl. "I bet she's quite a handful for you. I can only wish good luck for your hard work."

"Well, you could say that again. Beat her up for me, okay? So that she would be incapacitated for a month and she won't bother me much."

Hiromi faced her partner with a disappointed face as if she wasn't expecting it. "What's with that kind of attitude~? You're giving up already?"

"Not really. I want to try the new modification of my rifle as soon as possible," Kasumi said as she grabbed the bizarre silver-colored rifle from her back and rested it on her shoulder. It was almost as large as the girl but appeared to be lighter despite of its massive size. "Unfortunately, you're not kind enough to volunteer for that."

Hiromi closed her eyes as she crossed her arms in contempt. "Because I don't want to be your target practice thingie!"

"You're still lucky that I'm not making you pay for all of the equipments you wreck in my workplace. Not to mention all of the things you destroyed from the start."

Hiromi clasped her hands in amusement as she looked at Yukari in the eye, ignoring her companion. "Good! So, let us begin then? I still can't imagine that plan about disposing your pet actually worked."

Yukari rose an eyebrow to the brown-haired girl then smiled at the claim. "Pet? If you're referring to my shikigami. I will give her the liberty to shred you to pieces so that she could use your remains as fertilizers for her garden."

_Although most of those plants are vegetables._

_Wait...Disposed? Ran's at home right now and..._

_Hm, I see...this is interesting for the very least._

"No, not Ran-chan! I mean, that other girl with brown hair too! The one I ran over with...uh...that van," stuttered Hiromi then her eyes went wide. "W-Wait! I wasn't supposed to say that!"

Once again, a grin wider than before formed in Yukari's face as the gray-haired girl covered her face with her hand in shame. "Hmm~ So my guess is right. We finally found the culprit without even trying so, Kotobuki-san."

Tsumugi had her doubts at first as how could Hiromi pull off such trick. She almost forgot that the girl was a youkai to begin with.

"Hey, Kasumi, help me out here!"

Kasumi waved her hands as she deeply sighed. "Yeah, she's a hopeless airhead. I hope you would still spare her."

"You nearly killed my friend for that?" Tsumugi asked, increasing anger was evident on her voice.

"Is that a bad thing?" asked Hiromi. "Wait...nearly? So, she's alive then?"

"You're actually fine with that? What kind of person are you?"

Kasumi cleared her throat before speaking in a somewhat playful tone. "Okay~ The floor is now open to show any form of hostility and violence to this seemingly innocent girl."

"Shut up! You're not helping at all!" retorted Hiromi.

Yukari deeply sighed as she turned her head to Tsumugi, who was now greatly enraged at the moment. "I'll take care of this. This girl's way of thinking is way too different from a sane human, so I hope you understand."

The keyboardist formed a fist as it violently trembled. She wanted to punch the girl in the face so hard to give her a glint of realization to her actions. If that wouldn't work, she could only think of repeatedly punching harder for desired result. The moment her friends were involve in a grave incident, its a whole different story. The previous days were already a pressure for her part for keeping everything in order. Now, she finally found the culprit who started it all, apparently with shallow comprehension of things.

"I'll take care of that girl..."

Yukari looked at Tsumugi expectantly, amazed that the voice came from gentle girl she just knew. "Can you fight, Kotobuki-san?"

"I may not look like it, but I can."

Yukari slowly shook her head as she stepped forward, twirling her parasol. "Oh my...you shouldn't let anger take advantage over your composed demeanor. Let me play with them instead."

Tsumugi remained silent as she casted her glare to Hiromi that could pulverize boulders into fine powder or split gigantic tsunamis in half.

"What happened in the past cannot be undone by beating her to death, Kotobuki-san."

"Yes, you're right," said Tsumugi softly, keeping her rage down. "But I cannot allow her to leave that easily."

"I see your point but you don't need to involve yourself in this. This is quite a pastime for me, actually."

"It's settled then? You go first, Kasumi..." ordered the brown-haired girl with a tap on Kasumi's shoulder. "Make me proud."

"Why me?" Kasumi protested with grimace. "You're the one who thought of this!"

"Because I said so. Do you need more reasons for you to move? Or do I need to poke you with my pole axe?"

"Do I have other choices?" Kasumi reluctantly said as she stepped forward with her oversized rifle. "Okay, but this doesn't mean anything."

"I suggest that we must find a suitable place for this duel, shall we?"

Hiromi tilted her head, somehow lost. "Is this place not fine to you?"

"If you're willing to pay all of the property damage we might incur or possible death of humans around this vicinity; be my guest," said Yukari with a gesture to her right. People inside the coffee shop were attentively watching them with baffled expressions on their faces as they assumed that a cosplay event was being held somewhere.

"I agree. My friend here might cut off the electric supply again. Also, she still owes me a lot of things since last year and I'm afraid she might not pay them all even after a few decades."

"Just wait until I find a decent job! I'll pay you even twice the amount!" retorted Hiromi.

"You won't find one if you keep wrecking stuff, idiot."

* * *

><p>They were now in the middle of an open field with several trees and lamp posts in random spots where some held their picnics and other outdoor stuff but no person was seen around, which was a perfect opportunity for an apparently pointless duel.<p>

Kasumi tossed her large hat to her friend then she faced Yukari. "Still the same rules, right?

"Rules? What are those rules?" asked Tsumugi.

"Let's just say those rules limits the abilities of the combatants, making them more or less equal in the playing field. Even a human could best a powerful youkai if proper preparations were done. This doesn't mean that every fight is a cakewalk either," explained Yukari. "In other words, the spellcard rules helps to maintain delicate balance in Gensokyo."

Tsumugi was intrigued once more, not aware of the spellcard rules. She could say now that the very few accounts about Gensokyo she read was already outdated. After all, those accounts were made a few decades back and couldn't possibly record such important detail that was recently imposed. Anyways, she won't be needing them anymore as she could now enter the world of youkai conveniently. "I see. "

"Don't worry about the outcome. It's not like we're fighting to the death as bitter enemies. If you're exposed more to Gensokyo, you will know what I mean. For now, enjoy this show."

"I'll leave this now to you, Yakumo-san."

"Beat her up!" Hiromi shouted, thrusting a fist to the sky with unwavering enthusiasm.

From the distance, Tsumugi couldn't help to steal a glance on the brown-haired girl. _She somehow reminds me of Yui-chan but my friend wouldn't do such things like that. Maybe I should study youkai's behavior to understand them more._

"Be quiet, I'm not doing this for you."

"Shall we begin? I'll give you the first move."

With that said, the silver-haired girl launched herself with astounding speed towards the gap youkai who just closed her parasol and swung it in a wide curve in the air, releasing bright projectiles of her own. Tsumugi, on the other hand, opened her mouth in amazement.

Not taking any chances to get hit by any of the gap youkai's arsenal, Kasumi kicked the ground in reflex for a sharp turn to her right, avoiding the attack by a mere inch. As she returned to her stance, she glanced around her then back at Yukari before firmly holding her rifle, ready for her next attack.

"_Rifle Sign [Bolt Barrage]!_"

The girl's weapon started to spew out inconceivable amount of blue bullets as she pulled the trigger. Tsumugi held her breath as the gap youkai gracefully dodge the incoming bullets as if it was an everyday chore. She noticed that the bullets were not conventional ones made by humans. The weapon was amusingly powered by magic and the azure projectiles were all products of magic as well.

Tsumugi had her share of interesting magic since her childhood. She had met people with extraordinary abilities; a few of them are youkai as well. Even some of her friends trained to be able to use magic of different kinds. On her case, she was not much interested in harnessing her own abilities. She only wanted to play the keyboard with her band and live ordinarily like most people, blissfully unaware of the existence of magic and other supernatural elements. Yes, she might deny the fact of magic or youkai's existence, but her own environment, particularly her home, constantly reminds her that those beings were reality and never to be associated with fantasy stories anymore.

She recalled someone saying that the widespread influence of magic in the world was a double-edged blade. Knowing humans of today, she could never tell if magic will be ever used for the benefit of all. Suddenly, an azure bullet heading straight to her reminded her of the fight. With a clumsy swipe of her hand, the projectile shifted course until it hit a tree in the distance with a small explosion afterwards. With the corner of her eye, Yukari was slightly impressed in that moment. Tsumugi truly had capabilities to fight.

Going for the offensive, Yukari countered with her own as she danced in the air, making the crossfire more beautiful and deadly. Bullets flew everywhere without notice, hitting the trees, random posts on the road, and other unfortunate things around them that they didn't bother looking at for a second time. Tsumugi still remained in her place as she watched the two in awe, not concerned of any stray bullet that could probably fry her to crisp. She could just block or swipe them again with relative ease.

"Hmm~ What do you think you're doing?" asked Yukari in the midst of the danmaku exchange. "Activating a spellcard as your opening move is not like you at all."

"Just focus on not getting hit!" Kasumi simply replied. "They still hurt, you know?"

"I do not plan on getting hit anyways."

"Good to know."

Despite that her bullets didn't hit the mark, Kasumi kept her cool and sometimes smile as her opponent dodged every bullet she released. She kept a firm grip on the rifle's handle with her index finger at the trigger, following the movement of her target. She knew very well that she couldn't beat Yukari, even if Hiromi and several random youkai joined in and help her. She was not the type who would quickly accept a challenge; much less in inviting someone for a duel herself unless something worthwhile is at stake. If she willingly allow herself to such, perhaps it is for the sake of productivity and data gathering.

Suddenly, the Kasumi's barrage of magical bullets stopped and her eyes narrowed in frustration. She had problems about her weapon's capabilities, specifically its limits which she wanted to improve on.

"Crap, overheat..."

"I believe it's my turn now?"

From above, Yukari pointed her parasol to the girl as gold-colored light started to gather at its tip; the air around the gap youkai became distorted in the process. It didn't take her much time to unleash a contracted golden laser which was directed towards Kasumi in a considerable speed.

In such simple and direct attack, Kasumi simply hopped backwards to avoid it as if the wind itself was supporting her every move, again unleashing a powerful cannon blast of blue energy of her own.

Almost in a casual manner, Yukari opened her parasol slightly below her, blocking the projectile. Tsumugi was astounded, leaving her mouth slightly open in Yukari's countermeasure. Parasols were really useful - not only they protect you from harmful sun rays, but from magical attacks as well!

Kasumi giggled in content. "Well, that was a bit simple..."

"Really? How about this?"

A bright golden orb formed as soon as another laser fired by the gap youkai reached the ground. Kasumi went nearer as she looked at the floating orb curiously. "That looks pretty."

"Oh...but it hurts badly," replied Yukari with a grin. "...My cute little orb, detonate."

With the command, the orb exploded with potency greater than a hand grenade. Thanking her quick and unnatural reflexes, Kasumi barely got out of the blast zone by a jump backwards as a powerful gust of wind trailed after her although she still felt the strong impact in the process. The gray-haired girl was now floating in the air as she looked at the scar on the ground below then returning them to Yukari, giving off a faint whistle in the display of power. She knew that the gap youkai wasn't even trying to impress.

"You nearly got me there..."

"Knowing what you can do, I presume that you could avoid most of my attacks. You shouldn't worry much."

"You're giving me too much credit."

"Now, for my next..."

"Wait!" shouted Kasumi as she raised both of her hands. This made Yukari raise an eyebrow.

"Hm?"

"So...it took twenty seconds for the internal barrel to overheat. Also, the experiment on recoil reduction helped a lot too," mumbled Kasumi to herself as she took out a small notebook from under her overcoat and wrote her findings. "Thankfully, the reactor seemed to be stable and still functional. Needs improvements on the..."

"Shall we continue?" asked Yukari, seating on her gap comfortably.

Kasumi kept her writing tools as she readied her rifle again. "Ah, yes. I got carried away."

"As usual, you're only fighting me for performance data of your weapon. Typical for you."

"Ah, you knew me well. The battle is not over anyway," said Kasumi sheepishly as she pushed a button on her rifle. "I'm sure you don't mind if I'll switch projectiles? I need your opinion about this one."

A sly grin crossed the face of the gap youkai once again. "Go ahead, show me."

Kasumi aimed her rifle at the still sitting gap youkai and then squeezing the trigger almost instantly. Instead of resorting to block the attack using her parasol, Yukari just closed her eyes and opened a gap behind her, consuming the rather large projectile before it closed as if nothing was there. Another gap appeared, this time, from the rear of the unwary girl and it spewed the same projectile from her rifle. The bullet separated into several smaller ones before contact, also drastically amplified with Yukari's own power which packed enough strength to knock Kasumi to the ground.

The gray-haired girl was still conscious and probably could still continue on but she decided to raise the white flag to save herself from more pain.

Yukari went down and opened her parasol as her feet touched the ground, unscathed. "Looks like I win."

"I had enough anyway..."

"Sorry, but I don't want to be your judge on how painful that attack would get. I guess you have to do on your own."

"Tch...I didn't see that one coming. I almost forgot about that trick..."

"I guess you're not really in the mood for this. I'm terribly sorry for that."

"I just hope I didn't break anything. Hiromi can't pay hospital bills yet..."

Hiromi slowly aprroached her friend with a sullen look. "You're really weak, Kasumi. You disappoint me; that's not worth even called a fight."

"Shut up. There's none in a million chances you could win."

"Err...none in a million? What's that suppose to..." Hiromi's face crossed. "Hey!"

"Could you at least help me stand?"

"It's your own fault for being careless!" said Hiromi. "For now, watch how the strongest of us here do stuff!"

Yukari suddenly perked up in the girl's arrogant claim but frowned nonetheless. "Hmhm...Where did I heared that line again? But really, I need to go now."

"...Going so soon? But my turn just got started! If you will go now," Hiromi puffed her chest before pointing at Tsumugi who clenched her dominant fist at the ready. "I'll just play with your friend instead!"

"You see, my friend can play rough as well. If you don't behave like a good, innocent youkai, she might 'accidentally' exterminate you."

Hiromi glanced at the keyboardist. "I don't feel anything special about her..."

"Also, I guess someone needs to punish you for involving others in your ridiculous whims."

"Heh. The more reason for you to play with me!" said Hiromi as she pulled out her pole axe and readied herself in an odd battle stance. "Get ready, Yukari-chan!"

"There goes her hollow logic again," noted Kasumi as she resisted the urge to slap her face again. "Yukari, go easy on her, okay?"

"As you wish, but I can't make promises."

With another snap from Yukari's fingers, numerous gaps appeared around Hiromi as powerful streams of magic emerged from each of it, immobilizing Hiromi completely before she could make a move.

"No fair! Illegal move!" protested Hiromi as she tried not to make contact with the magic surrounding her. "This is worse than the last time!"

"Well, that's a more better treatment than before," remarked Kasumi.

"Kotobuki-san, I had a great time today," said Yukari as she summoned another gap behind Tsumugi, completely ignoring every complaint of the bounded girl. "That gap will lead you back to your school. I'll give you ample time to make sure this girl here won't follow you."

"What? Why would I waste my time on her? You're really a cheater, Yukari-chan!"

Tsumugi was surprised as Yukari decided to call it a day. She managed to smile once again as the whole day for her was more favorable. "So...you're leaving now too?"

"Yes, once I'm finished here."

"That was a bit sudden, but thanks for everything. You've been a great help, Yakumo-san."

"Cast your worry aside, I will make sure she would learn her lesson."

"Just visit us in the club room if you get bored!"

"Hey! Cheater! Look at me while I'm talking!"

After the gap closed behind the blonde keyboardist, Yukari looked at the brown-haired girl as she displayed her most mischievous grin. Hiromi felt frozen stiff as the gap youkai twirled her parasol playfully in her approach. "Since you insisted to play, I might give you this chance now. I'm sure Ran could wait for a few more minutes..."


	3. Rabbit's Afternoon

**/Notes/**

Oh, welcome to the third chapter! First of all, I'd like to thank all of you readers out there following this story. (This is actually a story to begin with? Okay, enough of this xD) I'm quite anxious whether I'm still on the right track whilst continuing this one but it's entertaining to me so far. Bear with me if you would, I consider this quite a challenge as well in my part...

This is quite a lengthy one too. I don't know why it turned out like this and it baffled me just for that reason alone. That only proves that I had fun making this. Oh, I hope this would save some questions for later. I got doubts if this chapter is any good at all...

Got nothing to say more. Enjoy reading while having something to munch on XD I personally like reading with snacks in my reach!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3 : Rabbit's Afternoon<strong>

* * *

><p>After taking a warm bath, Hiromi lazily went to the kitchen to drink anything that would satisfy her thirst. She opened the refrigerator then stared at the almost empty contents, save their usual water containers and the few remaining fish cuts they haven't decided what to make with. It was usually her job to restock their fridge as it was the only thing she could right, at least on what Kasumi observed so far. Her eyes glimmered as she saw something other than plain old water, a lonely can of soda hidden behind those containers. Wearing a childish grin, she quickly grabbed the can like it would be the last in her life and closed the fridge with a force that shook everything in its wake.<p>

Suddenly, her head started to throb again as if someone demonstrated the wonders of free fall with a stone brick somewhere above and coincidentally struck her after taking a few steps from the fridge. She couldn't tell if the headache was from her extensive use of her ability, which naturally happened on some occasions, or it was just Yukari who knocked the sense out of her with more punch than she anticipated. A few hours already passed from the gap youkai's beating but she had felt something was not right – a particular thing that was supposed to be in the picture but ended up missing, nowhere to be found.

Perhaps it should not count as a fair fight since she didn't get a chance to strike back. Even though she would face someone that was far stronger than her, she still insisted to push herself to it, ignoring Kasumi's advice. Maybe she was too stubborn to accept that she was being reckless. Hiromi could tell that even she would irritate Yukari like a very persistent mosquito from time to time, the gap youkai somehow enjoyed every confrontation as if it was part of her fun-to-do-things list in her out-of-Gensokyo trips. She was not entirely sure either as she assumed that Yukari would go outside Gensokyo for her own amusement. If she could only find a way to bypass the barrier enclosing the gap youkai's place, Hiromi would definitely drop by anytime in Yukari's house to annoy her without any compelling reason.

_Did the thought of why Yukari haven't disposed her permanently from the start ever crossed in her mind? More importantly, what she was doing was tantamount to suicide to the more level-headed ones?_

_Simply, Hiromi was just being Hiromi after all..._

_If she only knew more of Yukari's reputation in Gensokyo, she might start to reconsider her actions for a bit..._

Even though she just met Yukari for the span of only a year and a half, her curiosity to the ancient youkai seemed to be endless. She was a native youkai of the outside world and hadn't reached the place to be considered as a haven for her kind. When nothing to do, she would sometimes relax and contemplate what could be seen inside Gensokyo and why youkai such as Yukari chose to live in such place – another important detail she was eager to know.

From the place she was on now however, youkai seemed to be forgotten. What was more depressing, the few who were actually aware of the youkai's presence despised or simply didn't like them, some even exterminating the pesky ones for a good price. Was that because of the youkai's savage history over humankind a few centuries back? She didn't know the specifics but that would be saved as another story for later.

Hiromi had been alone in their house for more than an hour now and recalled Kasumi going to the nearest store after she regained consciousness. She was also been told not to wreck things in her friend's absence. Those cynical reminders were somehow needed for the likes of the brunette, stubborn and all.

She turned on the television and sat cross-legged in front of it as she grabbed a game controller underneath where all of the game discs and console accessories were neatly arranged, thanks for Kasumi's effort. Video games, especially that includes blood and action, were a perfect pastime for Hiromi to vent all of her angry, temporarily forgetting a specific memory in her mind that would invoke her 'cranky mode'. Yet, this would give Kasumi another trouble in fixing those game controllers that usually ended up a perfect crisp on the inside when she couldn't make progress to a particular game, in very rare cases, she would destroy the disc itself and complain how hard it was to finish, or the excessive, unnecessary mashing of the buttons in some of her games, such as fighting ones, that left them easily worn-out, even if it was fixed to pristine condition in that same day.

After some more minutes, Kasumi opened the front door, carrying four grocery bags that usually lasted before the end of the week. The gray-haired girl immediately went to the kitchen without any other word and began to sort the things she bought. Her mood didn't get any brighter for today despite of her short 'practice shooting', as what she prefer to call it, with Yukari. Indulging herself to Hiromi's plans seemed to be a stupid decision for her part but she couldn't left Hiromi in the open for too long or she would cause wanton destruction, whether it would be from boredom or in an unconscious manner without giving a damn about the outcome.

_At least, for Kasumi, it was good to see Yukari once in awhile..._

She only hoped that they wouldn't reach Yukari's limit. Hiromi's meddling might annoy Yukari, but she could never be angry to them for that reason alone. She believed that the gap youkai patience was more than everything else.

The rest of the evening was a peaceful one for them, probably more peaceful if they left Yukari and the other blonde girl to their business. Hiromi remained in her game she left earlier, bearing concentration that Kasumi probably never seen in more sensible things before, as she tried to pin down a deformed bipedal assault weapon systems a tad larger than a two-story building using her lightweight machine gun, loaded with armor-piercing rounds, as her primary weapon and various portable rocket launchers scattered around the place for additive damage. Her character, a girl who was just about to get out of her teens, was already covered in thick blood as she tried to avoid every laser beams, chaingun bursts and multiple rocket barrage from her opponent, which in turn redecorated the whole vicinity with craters and blast marks. Those annoying combat-support drones that were deployed from the bipedal weapon was getting into her nerves although their individual damage was something to be ignored.

This proved quite worth watching as Kasumi went nearer to watch, especially when seeing Hiromi's game face on.

The girl seemed to be faster and having more endurance than any normal human. She could even ran on walls and execute midair jumps multiple times- all depending on her stamina level. She could also take more punishment as she would live even after catching a HEAT round in point-blank range, provided to give her time to recover before resuming combat. The girl was not alone, as other few humans, apparently heavily-armed soldiers of the resistance group, joined the fray and rained down countless bullets to the rampaging mech with their respective weapons. She smiled, as she thought it would make her job easier. The bipedal weapon was battered to the point it couldn't move anymore as it collapse to its knees. Activating a special ability, the girl's right arm morphed into a fearsome organic cannon about half her size and jumped on the mech's cockpit, aiming at point-blank range for a quick finish.

"Now's my chance!" The brunette cried fiercely as if she was the character herself, complete with the monotone voice. "Taste true power!"

But it only made things worse as she received a clean hit of a nasty warhead from a soldier wielding an RPG launcher far behind. If any normal person would catch something like that, body parts would definitely fly everywhere. In the girl's case, she was still alive and in one piece, given the gameplay mechanics, although incapacitated for a given time.

"G-Get up! No time to rest in the middle of a crossfire!"

It was nothing to worry as the girl's incredibly fast regeneration rate was a thankful addition to her abilities. The unexpected friendly fire gave a golden chance for the bipedal weapon to recover to its feet then, from all unlucky events that could possibly happen, accidentally crushed the girl in the process.

"W-What in the..." Hiromi stared at the game over screen for a few seconds before subsequently reacting like it was something unbelievable.

"DAMMIT! Stupid NPCs and their stupid aim! I was about to finish it!"

Kasumi giggled. "That's because you jumped in front of their line of fire? No one in their right mind would do that, much less in actual combat."

"Gah! You saw that, right? Are they blind? I bet those other humans were controlled by the psycho-freaks too! It happens all the time!" cursed Hiromi as she set down the controller, already losing interest. This was quite surprising for Kasumi, as her friend would usually do something in the daily routine like throwing said controller to the screen or to the nearest, unobstructed window. "Now, I have to repeat all of this again because there's no freaking checkpoint in this chapter!"

"Then blame the developer. Not me."

"I would like to mention that my copy of this game is broken too! I get to freeze in the middle of cutscenes and some missions too!"

"It's either that way or you really just suck. Maybe altogether? I don't know."

"I've lost my money pouch somewhere this morning, Yukari got me soaked in the plaza's fountain, then this! Is this day won't get any better?"

"You deserve it anyways. If she tosses you out in the ocean, I can't help to wonder what kind of miracle you'll pull out. If you asked me, I'll just watch you from afar with popcorn."

"Obviously, I can't swim! You should know that more than everybody else!" retorted Hiromi as she slumped herself on the couch. "Ugh, I think I'm going to catch a cold..."

"You better not," warned Kasumi as she put a hand on her waist. "I don't want to babysit you for the next few hours."

"So what should we do now?"

"I suggest anything that doesn't involve any pain and property damage. Why won't you try the 'leave your companion at peace' option for once? Also, you'll end up attracting them again."

"Hm. I guess it would be good to rest for a bit," Hiromi mumbled softly as she covered her face with a cushion, finally conceding. "My body hurts..."

"Running out of things to do, huh? Fortunately, I got plenty of things to do."

"Hey," called Hiromi as she shifted her body to the side and looked at her partner, "are all of your kind like that? I mean, they're all inventors or something?"

There was a short pause. Kasumi hesitantly glanced at the floor. "I...don't know. Why do you care anyway?"

The unexpected response made Hiromi frown. "Hey, what's with all that sullen mood? I'm just asking. _Besides, you're originally from that place, If I'm not mistaken._"

"Try to convince me instead. I might tell you if you do."

"Convince you? Sounds easy, after I take a nap...or maybe tomorrow. When I'm in the mood, I guess."

"Also, in case you'll forget later, you owe me a soda."

"It's not like I'm going anywhere..."

* * *

><p>Hirasawa Yui barely opened her eyes as she felt a sudden surge of energy inside her, waking her whole system up in the process. Feeling like she slept for a whole day, she brought her body up in a single pull. With a still sleepy yawn, she slowly stretched her arms up high for a few seconds before setting them down. The visit of her friends and sister yesterday was a great boost to her spirit and mood. Even though she had to wait for some more days before she could go back, it was something that she appreciated the most since she bought her beloved guitar two years ago. In that thought, she leaped out of her bed but almost stumbled to the floor as her legs started to shake. She managed to get a hold of the window's frame before pushing herself back on the bed, deciding to take it more slowly instead as she was not yet in her best condition.<p>

It was still dark as she gazed outside the window beside her fluffy bed, which was rare for her to be awake at this hour. The chilly fog surrounding the mansion was as thick as yesterday and she could hear strange noises from afar, probably from the ever-present youkai. She pondered about getting up early before the sun loomed over the horizon more often would be a new, refreshing experience for her. It might save some effort for her sister's part for going into her room just to wake her up.

Indeed, Hirasawa Yui woke up on her own earlier than anyone could expect...

That would be a great help for her hardworking sister, even for a bit. Ui would be so _proud_ of her if that day would finally come, where Yui could open her eyes in the morning and prepare herself before even being told.

Then, she breathed deeply the morning air she never had before in the outside world. For her, it was like the air was generously filtered and added with an extra flavor she couldn't describe. Perhaps it was the same feeling for being in a different world from where she used to be. She could hear rhythmic footsteps as if it was going back and forth without any specific purpose in the hallway. It was always like this as the rabbits of the eternal mansion would do the chores, at least for this particular day she wasn't aware of.

_Hmm! I'm feeling great today!_

_I wonder what's for today's breakfast..._

Gathering her strength once more, she attempted to walk without any intention of hugging the floor with her face. Standing was surprisingly easy but she could feel her legs tremble again. Yui thought that she shouldn't be standing in the first place as Eirin never told her such. Well, she wouldn't know otherwise if she didn't try herself. Slowly, she took each step one at a time to avoid bringing her legs to its limits.

She slid the door open, only to look back as she forgot one more thing to do in her morning ritual.

"Ah, Gitah! Good Morning too! I've got to go for a bit. Behave while I'm gone, okay?"

Of course, the guitar remained silent beside her bed and couldn't respond to her by any means. As much love and concern Yui gave to the guitar; it looked like she was wasting her voice on a lifeless instrument that would never return anything to her. A very unique, childish mindset of hers that cannot be apprehended easily by anyone. All that matters for her was that she was enjoying every second of those moments and wouldn't regret them in her lifetime. It would be for the best to leave her alone in the little world of hers.

She carefully walked her way as she tried to find the manor's kitchen. The wooden floor of the hallway appeared to be cleaned thoroughly just awhile ago as if she could see herself similar to a mirror. A tiny part of her brain warned her again, kind of similar when her younger sister was about to hit her patience limit, as Eirin and the others would probably restrain her for good until she would behave herself like a child. Not only she was able to walk again; she also left her room and now wandering to find the kitchen. If there should be a need to put blame on her seemingly impetuous actions, it would be her empty stomach.

Does that mean her stomach had a will of its own too? One could only marvel on a breakthrough such as Hirasawa Yui.

In unexpected luck, She saw Tewi going out of a room on her right, carrying a glass of water. After staying up late last night, it would be natural for her to be tired.

"Good Morning, Tewi," Yui greeted in a drowsy manner as she passed by the youkai rabbit.

"Ah, Yui, morning. Where are you going?" replied the rabbit girl as she rubbed her eyes with her free hand. "You shouldn't be awake yet at this hour."

"Say, do you know where's the kitchen is? I'm hungry."

"Can't you just wait on your bed? I'll give it to you later..."

"But I'm already here. Can you just point where it is?"

"Straight ahead. Don't do anything stupid, okay?"

As soon as she was about to take another step, she suddenly froze and her eyes widened in awareness and shock, almost dropping the glass she was holding and removing her drowsiness completely. She slowly turned her head back to the guitarist who was able to move again with ease.

"What in the world? You're already fixed?" exclaimed Tewi, running towards Yui.

"Ah? Me? What do you mean?"

"Don't tell me that master's medicine worked! This is madness!"

"Why are you surprised? I thought you trust Yagokoro-san's medicines?"

"Not entirely!" Tewi looked at the brunette, particularly her dress which was the same hospital gown she wore before being sent to Eientei. "I think you need a change of clothes. Let's ask Reisen for that."

"Rei-chan? Where is she anyway?"

Tewi grinned as she heard the Yui's nickname for the moon rabbit, much to her amusement. "By this hour, she's in the kitchen now, preparing the banquet for later."

The two subsequently went to the place where it would be considered as the manor's mess hall. Wooden tables and benches filled the room which was strangely enough to accompany all rabbits living inside Eientei, despite of the limited area. Eccentric plants Yui never seen before decorated the walls and a cute drinking fountain was placed in one corner. The nifty counter, where all of the food was distributed by the staff, and the kitchen were at the opposite end of the room. Also, the large window at the right side was a thing to be noted as it allows open air to enter easily. The outdoor atmosphere was indeed fitting for the youkai rabbits and probably for everybody else as well. Even Eirin and Kaguya would sometimes eat their meals there more often that they should be.

"This is the refectory?" asked Yui. A few rabbits cleaning the tables give themselves time to glance at her before resuming to their work. "It's cute! I wish we had something like this in our school. Actually, I almost never visit our school's cafeteria since we have our packed lunch and Mugi-chan's snacks."

"Yeah. We built this area a couple of months back for us rabbits. We renovated this part of the manor since it doesn't have any particular use," said Tewi in a proud tone. She would always say that it was something that they made with their own hard work. "Oh, the kitchen is in the back. Reisen should be there now."

"Ah! I can't wait for breakfast!"

"Can't control your hunger, eh? Well, it can't be helped. That's why you left your room in the first place, right?"

"Why are the rabbits so busy than the previous days?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you that tomorrow will be _Reigetsusai_!"

"Huh? What's that?"

"It's a festival suggested by Master Eirin and Lady Kaguya. We held it during the night of the full moon every month."

"Ah, sounds like fun. I love festivals!" Yui enthusiastically replied then placed her index finger on her lower lip. "Oh, if tomorrow is the festival. What are we celebrating today?"

"I thought you might ask," muttered Tewi as she scratched her head. "We also held a party of us youkai rabbits the day before the moon festival. We spend a lot of time pounding mochi and doing other stuff the whole time, you know? So, I demanded for this holiday for us. It took me a lot of time to press it on master's face though. This will surely increase the morale of the rabbits, especially every time when the rabbits prepare for Reigetsusai."

"But...you just play all day like Reisen told me one time. She kept complaining about the pranks you always do."

"Ah, well," Tewi stammered as she tried to cover her shame. "I do work..._sometimes._"

"Oh, really now? I wonder..."

"Hey, don't get started on me!" The rabbit retorted as she folded her arms on her chest. "In this household, I'm the one who does that."

As they reached the place, Tewi kicked the double doors open and entered the noisy kitchen. The sudden intrusion of the two didn't steal any attention from the workers. The handful of rabbits seemed to be absorbed on what they were doing since their demands were accepted by Eirin. Utensils and other silverware clattering to each other as the rabbits worked, occasional screaming on sudden explosions and errors, and sound of cooking, such as frying and boiling, that was typically to be heard inside every morning.

In Yui's surprise, the kitchen appeared to be almost as large as the dining hall. Several humanoid rabbits were helping Reisen to cook for their buffet for the feast later. Sure enough, a mansion housing a lot of rabbits would require them more than what they need but for this day, it seemed that they were making more than what they could consume. The kitchen had different workstations somehow similar to the outside world's restaurants. The coordination of the rabbits were a spectacle sight as well, each had varying roles in the kitchen as they worked on a specific meal. It was an interesting for Yui to know that youkai rabbits were able to make great dishes.

_Amazing! So this is like to be in a kitchen filled with rabbits. _Yui thought as excitement filled her body. Not anyone would be given a chance to catch glimpse on a rabbit-operated kitchen. Probably the only kitchenever existed that would allow such workers in the first place. _I bet Ui would be very surprised to see this!_

Probably, if Yui had a restaurant, she would gladly invite those youkai rabbits as her employees.

Well...that would be too weird to eat in a place like that. Waitresses, chefs and all others wearing those cute bunny ears, except that those ears were actually real. Then, what might transpire after her customers knew that her employees were youkai rabbits was a sight to behold.

"She got her hands full, huh?"

"We shouldn't disturb her now." Yui whispered to Tewi. "I could wait until she's done."

"Nonsense! This is rather urgent!" said Tewi in a voice not to be expected from a tiny rabbit girl then she puffed her chest in determination. Almost everyone was startled in the kitchen as the youkai rabbit of good fortune shouted her greeting. "Good morning everyone!"

"What do you want now? We're working here..." Reisen didn't bother to look back as she was still busy slicing bamboo shoots and other vegetables. Once she got into work, she would put all of her focus in the given task until she completes it - A trait that Tewi always used to her advantage when it comes to her pranks. Since it was only her prankster companion, she knew that it was not to be given of concern or importance.

"Reisen, can we borrow-"

A youkai rabbit with curly brown hair went out of her station to inquire the moon rabbit, cutting Tewi off. The brown-haired rabbit was carrying a small bowl of creamy mushroom soup. "Reisen, should I put more pepper into the soup? I don't trust my own taste."

Reisen tasted the given sample with a spoon, allowing her taste buds to absorb the soup's flavor. "Ah, I think this would do. Try adding a bit of pepper then simmer it some more."

"Er, Reisen. We need some clothes for-"

"Uhm, I think the rice is done. Where should I put this one?" shouted another rabbit a bit farther from the back as she raised a pot probably filled with said rice.

"Just put it next to the finished ones. Be careful not to topple them," said Reisen then she turned to Tewi. "What was that again?"

Suddenly, a burst of fire erupted from a stove as nearby rabbits took evasive actions to avoid being roasted to golden brown.

"Ahh! Fire! FIRE!" a fidgety rabbit girl cried while running in circles as the torrent of fire literally reached the ceiling. Apparently, she was assigned to a very convenient stove that uses magic as fuel and let her curiousness take over by setting the fire a bit higher than it should. She wasn't expecting a powerful output from the stove which took her by surprise. "W-What should I do?"

"Calm down and put that fire out!" ordered Reisen before panic completely take over the kitchen. Accidents like these happened frequently, much to her dismay, but she could see improvement as each day passed. "Master's going to kill me if that spreads!"

Another rabbit, who happened to be carrying a bucket of water, did the initiative of soaking the stove with water but to no avail. "Ah! It's too strong!"

As last resort and probably to save from more trouble, Reisen formed a gesture that seemed to resemble a gun with her right hand and accurately shot a red projectile straight to the stove. To her relief, the fire died in a flash and there were no additional damage made aside from the scorch mark above them. Then again, she was quite lucky that the stove didn't explode in the first place.

_T-That stove's dangerous..._

_I think I should return that to Rinnosuke-san later; can't have something like that when the rabbits are around..._

The clumsy rabbit girl earlier broke to tears as she fell to the floor in embarrassment and fear. This was not the first time she caused trouble in the kitchen and probably to other duties as well. "R-Reisen...I'm sorry for being a burden..."

_Wait...she could have just turned it off in the first place..._

_Oh well..._

"No harm done, I guess. I think it was the stove's fault all along..."

With an encouraging smile, Reisen offered her hand to the rabbit and took it afterwards. "Thank you...I'll do my best next time."

"Okay, break time's over. We're almost done, so let's get moving." Reisen said as she turned to the rest of the rabbits.

After what appeared to be a short television commercial, they resumed their work as time wouldn't wait for them. The dim sunlight already crawled its way inside the kitchen and there were still a lot of things to do beside from cooking. Yui suddenly felt bad about breaking everyone's momentum in their work.

"Uhm, Reisen? I think you need to listen to me now," said Tewi as she approached the moon rabbit from behind. "This is quite important."

"Okay, I'm listening. Just get to the point already."

"Oh, _Rei-chan_...Don't be so cold on me! That alone shattered my delicate feelings for you! It's like you stabbed my heart repeatedly without knowing that I cared for you in everything!"

"W-What ...What did you just said?" stammered Reisen as she began to lose focus on her work, her hands slightly shaking. "Anyways, we're kinda short here. Mind if you help us?"

Tewi pondered the offer for a moment before shrugging briefly. "Maybe next time."

"Are you here just to annoy me? We need to finish everything before noon. You should be the one enthusiastic about this since you're the one who made this up! Seriously, put some dedication to your work!"

Tewi just sighed. "Not really. I'm just asking if I could borrow your clothes."

Reisen stopped what she was doing as she heard the absurd. "Eh? As if those clothes would fit on you. If you want a new style for your dress, we could visit the village in our free time."

"Not me. It's for Yui! Just give me an answer already if you don't want to be disturbed!"

Reisen finally turned around and saw the guitarist at the doorway who waved a hand at her with a cheery smile. Her face turned to absolute horror as if she just saw something disturbing. She appeared to be relieved but suspicious at the same time. "Don't tell me that..."

"...Master's human regeneration enhancer drug worked?" Tewi continued. "Yeah, just what I said earlier but she's completely healed now."

"Hirasawa-san...are you sure that you're fine? Don't you feel anything...unusual?" asked Reisen in a rather coarse voice with widened eyes. She couldn't believe what she was seeing now. It was like her vision was induced by her own ability.

"Yep, I'm fine! Don't worry about me."

"Are you sure about that?"

Yui nodded several times. "Uh-huh. I don't know what happened but I'm positively okay now. It's like a miracle from the gods!"

"Everyone, continue your work. Excuse me for a moment!"

With that said, Reisen grab Yui by the arm and ran outside the kitchen with haste.

She had no doubts when it comes to her master's reputation as a pharmacist but she always had the urge to question behind Eirin's miracle drugs. If anyone could do such drug as Eirin's, she wouldn't be surprised by any means as if it was as easy as making pancakes. It wouldn't help her if the lunarian was secretly working on some new suspicious drugs that she didn't even know what it does unless she would drink it herself.

_Reisen was the lunarian's apprentice after all._

"Reisen! Are you sure you two should be running? Her bones might break because of you!"

With that warning, they decided to walk to Eirin's room in a more convenient pace.

* * *

><p>"Master! Master!" Reisen called out as she knocked at the door. "Are you there?"<p>

"Udonge, what's with this ruckus?" asked Eirin in an annoyed manner as she reluctantly opened the door, her hands on her waist. "I hope you're watching the rabbtis on their work."

"Oh, good morning, Yagokoro-san!" greeted Yui in her usual energy.

"Did you slept well, Hirasawa-san? I see that you're in great shape today!"

"How about you?"

The lunarian's sullen mood faded in an instant as she nicely replied with a creepy smile. "You bet I am! How about we go have some breakfast together first?"

"Master, I-"

"Absolutely! Oh, you brought Udonge too! Perfect timing!" said Eirin in an overly excited voice, very far from her usual mood. In fact, Eirin's mood shifted so fast that it sent chills on the moon rabbit's spine. "Did you prepared our breakfast for this morning?"

"Uhm, do I look like having a twin sister working in this manor? A-Anyways, we already made breakfast," replied Reisen with a rather deadpan expression. "Master, what kind of scheme are you pulling now?"

"I'm not pulling anything, Udonge. Don't you think it's a great day for the rabbit's festival? I'm very positive that things will go smoothly as ever!"

"Ah, yes. But we still have to finish the preparations for later. It's not like I'm excused from work today..."

"That can wait, right? After all, you and the other rabbits have the whole afternoon for yourselves!"

"Right! I'm about to burst in excitement for this rabbit party!" exclaimed Yui with an eager thrust of her fist to the air.

"See? Even Hirasawa-san agrees with me. Since I'm feeling generous today, you only need to deliver some of my medicines this time."

"M-Master? I don't know what you ate last night but could you please stop this now?" pleaded Reisen, getting more scared as her master spurted out fluffy and airy words in a very short interval. The image of her master that she always looked up to was slowly fading into oblivion. Something was definitely wrong.

"No need to have doubts, Udonge. I'm your master and I know what will be the best for you. I will show you the light, my loyal apprentice!" Eirin claimed as she laughed, almost in a hysterical manner.

"Ahhh! The light is too strong for me to bare!" said Yui as she dramatically blocked her eyes with her arm as she pretend to be blinded. "Is this the power of your..._charismatic mentorship _thingie?"

"Someday, Hirasawa-san, you shall be enlightened by the light as well."

"T-That's it? You should be more surprised!" said Reisen as she pulled Yui in front of her, clearly not enjoying cheerful Eirin anymore. "I mean, she wasn't supposed to be standing now! Unless you have something to do with it!"

The Lunarian gave a shocked look to the brunette, deeply analyzing the guitarist's frame before narrowing her eyes. "Wait, you're right! Something's definitely wrong here."

"You see what I mean now? Wait...did you realize that just now?"

Eirin continued as she ignored the moon rabbit. "How can that be?" asked Eirin as she lightly scratched her chin. "Maybe it's Tewi's fault..."

Tewi's eyes widened in the claim. "What? Why blame me for this? I can't even heal myself that fast!"

"Well, I dunno. Maybe most of your luck got rubbed onto Hirasawa-san?"

Reisen just sighed and rubbed her forehead in her master's conclusion.

"My luck can't possibly do something like that," explained Tewi bluntly. "If being lucky would make you invincible, I won't be surprised if people will start worshiping me and build me a shrine of my own."

"That's a good point..."

"You could just told us that it was your medicine that fixed Yui," Reisen spoke as if she was about to lose her voice and motivation to pursue further. She only wanted to end this quickly. She still had things to check on.

"Fufufu, I guess that last medicine did reach my expectations."

"Master, can you please cut that out? You sounded like the mistress of boundaries..." muttered Reisen, starting to get more and more disturbed. "Anyways, I don't think it was just the regeneration enhancer did this."

"I don't know about that! I did nothing!" cried Eirin as she covered her face with her hands. "Why do you put the blame on your master?"

"You don't have to be so denial about this..."

"Huhuhu...You know me well, my loyal apprentice," said Eirin dramatically as a smirk formed across her face. "Perhaps it is time to enlighten you what really happened to Hirasawa-san."

"Did you rehearsed this last night? It's creeping me out..."

"Aw...Udonge, this is my only chance to brilliantly act like a mastermind," said Eirin as she pouted childishly. "You spoiled my fun." Her face shifted to a devilish grin. "I'm afraid I have to punish you for that."

"T-That's totally unfair!" Reisen protested as tears welled up on her eyes. Punishments were always a cruel game played by Eirin which in turn made the poor moon rabbit out of commission for several days. Although Tewi would enjoy the spectacle that looked like a comedy series every Saturday night, she would also suffer the consequences as she would take charge of the chores that Reisen left.

"I'm just fooling around," said Eirin, returning her normal tone before turning to Tewi with a hopeful wink. "Tewi, how's that for a starter?"

"Well played, master! I knew you're up to something behind that smile of yours earlier although that kind of thing doesn't fit you well. I guess it's all up to me in teasing Reisen. Just leave that part to the expert."

"Hm, I guess I need more tricks in my book."

"If you need help, just give me a call, master!"

Reisen didn't know whether she would cry or laugh. Perhaps both? She was supposed to be used to it now - tolerating every prank she receives from Tewi, the harbinger of her misery and enduring Eirin's punishment that became a casual game for the lunarian. Reisen knew in her heart that her master couldn't possibly turn to someone like Tewi. Not in her lifetime. If that would be inevitable, maybe she would be in the moon again before that happens. Whacking the heads of her master and the youkai rabbit seemed like a good option. However, she couldn't do that. The combined deterrent of those two was more than she could handle.

Doing the initiative, the pharmacist spoke again, "As you said earlier, the enhancer alone couldn't possibly heal Hirasawa-san completely overnight. I simply gave her another medicine before she slept."

Yui tilted her head to the side. "Huh? I don't remember taking anything..."

"Fufufu, of course you don't. I mixed it into the water you had before sleeping."

"Why am I not so surprised about this scheme?" asked Tewi in a thinking posture. "Typical, I guess."

"What is important now is that additive worked and she is now healed," said Eirin. "Oh, and those side effects will eventually wear out, so no worries."

Reisen had the urge to ask again. "What kind of side effects would that be? Master, I'm clearly aware that Hirasawa-san is your patient but you don't have to use her for those kind of things. She's a human too."

"Uhm, all of you here can call me Yui instead. No need for formalities," Yui chipped in. "Oh, my friends call me Yui-chan. You can call me that too!"

"Ah, about that? To put it simply, the enhancer basically pushes her regeneration ability to the limit, leaving her body in a state of shock as she couldn't possibly catch up on the sudden changes that occurred. She just need time to adjust and everything will be fine."

"That would be a relief then," said Reisen, contented on the response. Still, there was something that didn't feel right on the process. "I suppose she just need a few more days of rest for that."

"Now that you're fixed. I guess you don't have any reason to be here anymore," said Tewi. "If Yukari visits you again, you'll be able to get back to your place in a flash!"

"I wonder when would that be. I wonder..." said Eirin softly. Surely, Yukari, who was supposed to watch all of Gensokyo in case of an impending incident and the regular maintenance of the barrier, wouldn't forget about Yui. But when? She didn't have a slightest clue. The gap youkai's shikigami did most of her job while enjoying herself taking a 'nap' or doing something else 'entertaining'.

"No!" Yui quickly replied with firmness in her voice which made Tewi and Reisen rose an doubtful eyebrow as they recalled Yui's grumbling the past few days about being bored without nothing to do interesting other than a friendly chat or stare at the walls of the room until she realized it was already sunset and time for dinner. It was clear as day that the guitarist wanted to go home as soon as she was allowed so by Eirin, but what were the chances of meeting them again? Even if Yukari gave her access to the somewhat closed world of youkai, it would be hard for someone like Yui to find the eternal mansion.

Now that she remembered, Tsumugi was the one who was overly enthusiastic about exploring Gensokyo. Yui was interested herself, but it was something that was not to be considered important as her daily intake of cake and tea should be satisfied first. She would definitely give Eientei a visit if she knew what path to take or survive on the way.

"I wanna stay here until the festival's over!"

"Nice excuse, Hirasawa-san," said Tewi as she gave the guitarist a thumbs up. "You're really catching up!"

"What were you teaching her Tewi?" asked Reisen.

Eirin pondered the small request for a bit, turning her gaze away from the brunette.

Who could resist the power of the brunette's puppy eyes?

"I guess it won't be a bother. Well then, if you're more than willing, I guess it won't bother much if you'll help Udonge sell medicines in the village if the opportunity allows you so?"

"Sure, I'm used to part-time jobs anyway!" Yui enthusiastically replied as her eyes gleamed on a whole new level. "I won't let you down!"

"Don't worry, I'm not the type who rushes people to pay their bills. I have plenty of time anyway."

Tewi just nodded at the immediate decision of the guitarist. _She just keep saying yes without any thinking. She's somewhat an airhead. If she was a youkai rabbit, master would be more than happy to have someone like her. Reisen, on the other hand..._

"Master, she was just healed and you will send her to work already?" asked Reisen. "She should use her remaining time here resting."

Tewi made a smile before sighing to herself. _Pretty much expected that..._

"I would, but Yukari haven't payed her expenses yet, so..."

"Master, I think it's not fair for her. Why not ask Yakumo-san personally for the payment?" suggested Reisen as she was clearly not in favor. Eirin could be cold at times and she would use any available asset at her disposal.

Yui gathered her thoughts for some seconds before coming to a sensible conclusion – a recent and familiar one. "Ah, so my work will serve as an _initial payment_ of my expenses?"

The lunarian grinned widely as she heard the guitarist's response. "It's good to know that you're a fast learner, Hirasawa-san. I'm starting to like you."

"I don't know if should really ask this, but...are you, by any chance, a relative of Yakumo-san?"

Eirin's eyes completely widened as if the question was the least she would expect from anyone. "W-What made you say that? That came from nowhere..."

"Uh, I could see the relevance."

"Maybe it would be best if you start helping now. I'm certain that you will enjoy working here," said Eirin, then beamed once again. "Don't worry, I will be easy on your daily tasks."

"Eh? Master? Are you serious?" asked Reisen.

"Ah, that's okay. I could manage all kinds of things! Well, maybe the easy ones..."

"Udonge, if you have anything to do, Hirasawa-san will give you a hand."

"B-But...Ah, okay...," Reisen conceded as she looked at Yui who nodded at her eagerly. "Maybe you could accompany me to Kourindou? I have to ask something there and also to return that crazy stove."

"Where's that?" asked Yui.

"It's quite a walk from here. A-Are you sure you want to join?"

Yui shrugged then beamed at the moon rabbit. "Why not? I got nothing to do interesting anyway. This is my chance to explore outside this mansion!"

"You sure are excited about this. Well, you are an _outsider_," said the youkai rabbit.

"Putting that aside," Eirin coughed once before continuing. "Tewi, you'll be the one who will take charge of the duties for now. Udonge won't be long anyway."

"Okay, but you gotta go back quickly Reisen! We'll start without you and eat all of the food!"

"Fine, I think there's more than enough for everyone," Reisen replied half-heartedly with a cold stare to the rabbit of good fortune.

"I'm not joking at the delivery part though," said Eirin as she went to the medicine drawers to fetch a couple of clear bottles containing thick greenish liquid. "I think Kourindou's proprietor requested this a week back. Since I was busy with Hirasawa-san's medicines, I forgot about this medicine until the other day."

Reisen's eyes slightly widened. "Oh, that. I remember now. He even asked you if there is a medicine that could reduce someone's sleep hours or even removing it entirely without suffering much of the consequences on that matter."

"Wow! Is that even possible?" asked Yui. "Is that similar to coffee?"

Tewi was slightly fazed but find it somehow natural for Eirin to make medicines beyond the limit. Well, she still had the right to react like magic never existed or the youkai were actually a product of a greater entity's imagination. "Yeah, if you think it that way, it sounds funny. No, seriously, did you already make one?"

"Sleep is essential to everyone, being a youkai is not an exemption. Depriving yourself of it will make your whole body sluggish, ensuing slower reaction time and the spirit will also be affected in a quite similar to the physical body although that would be another separate topic."

"Very true. You can't do much things without sleeping," Reisen added.

"This medicine will revitalize the body and spirit to make up for those lost hours of sleep. Rinnosuke-san will find this helpful, especially in times like these where he got a haul of new outside world goods."

"That seemed to be just your typical medicine then."

"Honestly, I can't make medicine such as that. Besides, relying on medicine all the time is not good either."

"It sounded not right coming from you."

"Just one proof that I learned from the past. I daresay that goes the same to everyone else. Now, get moving before I change my mind of actually giving you punishment~"

Reisen winced before she straightened her body. "H-How can you say that with that smile on your face?"

* * *

><p>Azusa entered the empty club room after her class's last period. She felt that gloominess enveloped the room as if it was devoid of life for an ample of time. The rain outside didn't help to liven up the once relaxing ambiance of the room. She was expecting that the rest would be there soon. Maybe they had cleaning duty or some other tasks to be done first.<p>

After setting down her bag and guitar, she didn't feel like sitting at all. Instead, she approached the water tank and stare at the room's resident turtle, Ton-chan. The petite turtle swam happily around the limited but large space of the tank for its size. Azusa lightly tapped the glass with her index finger for a few times, almost in a hypnotized manner. There were things that came into her mind and demanded her to search for answers that seemed to be entirely absurd to the world where she was well-aware of.

Now that she knew the true condition of Yui, she was free of worry and she could now focus more on her usual activities, at least on what she expected to happen but it didn't work on her favor. The visit yesterday lead her to more extraordinary questions that might make her look weird or crazy if she would share it to her classmates. Then again, probably the occult club would be the only ones who would be more than glad to listen to what she just learned. Maybe she would end up being recruited by the club and learn about supernatural beings instead of playing the guitar.

What baffled her was the fact that the only way that they could enter in that world was by the help of the blonde woman who could control boundaries, an ability that held many meanings which confused her more as she indulged herself more interpreting it. She could just forget every detail of them after her senpai returned as if it was a dream but it was likely to rather stay in her mind for a very long time. Conversely, why was she so interested to begin with? Was it because she was enlightened by something didn't suppose to exist?

The more frightening revelation was about the existence of youkai. Even though Yukari appeared to be no different to a human being, she claimed to be a youkai. Could it be possible that youkai also live among them? The question made her cringe as it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that she had seen or even met a youkai before, not only aware of their true identity.

_What if Ton-chan is a youkai?_

_..._

_No, that would be ridiculous...too ridiculous..._

Azusa just sighed to herself as she was getting overworked thinking about something unimportant. Claiming that their turtle was a youkai made her no better than Hirasawa Yui. Now that she remembered her senior guitarist, she wondered what could be the life of being in a youkai's place. From their visit, the youkai in the mansion were not that far from humans in any means. In fact, they were too accomodating that anyone wouldn't think that they were youkai. If that were the case, it would be safe to tell that youkai were not all savage and destructive, as portrayed in some random stories she read in the past.

"Oh, Azusa's already here."

She was too occupied in her thinking to the point that she failed to notice the rest of the club members already entered the room. They seemed to be in their usual mood today.

"Azusa, something wrong?" asked Ritsu as she casually threw her bag on the usual blue bench before their table. "You're spacing out..."

"Ah, well. It's nothing important really."

"Are you sure?" asked Mio, quite worried. Azusa quickly nodded in response as she didn't want to bring it up.

"You know, I had a hard time sleeping last night just because of thinking about youkai. Who would have thought that they actually exist out of those old stories? Can you believe that?" said Ritsu as she sat on a chair and rested her back comfortably. "I can't help to wonder if all of them are the same as Yakumo-san. Maybe some of them actually eat humans! Does this mean that ghosts exist too?"

Well, she had to thank the drummer for the refresher. She guessed that the whole youkai thing wouldn't get out of her system any time soon.

Despite of being Ritsu, she made a valid point. Could it be that there were other mythical creatures existed in the world aside from youkai? This would only open up a lot of questions that might cause Azusa's mind to collapse or implode in processing all of those alone.

"I-I thought that we're done with all of that youkai stuff?" said Mio as she gave Ritsu a fierce look. She certainly didn't like where the conversation was going.

"Did you enjoy my little story last night?" asked Ritsu with a smug face.

"Who said anything about enjoying that? Do that again and I won't answer any more calls from you again."

Ritsu ignored the bassists as she continued. "Also, I'm sure that you're aware of this, but the increasing number of disappearances in some places sure is scary, don't you think? The police is getting no leads about those cases too!"

"Ah, I've heard them in the news too!" Tsumugi chipped in as she prepared tea for the rest. "We should be more cautious, especially going anywhere outside our homes."

"...Because you will never know that the person you're talking to now is actually a youkai that will eat your intestines out like they were spaghetti!"

As an automatic defensive measure that the bassist unconciously practiced for years being with Ritsu, the bassist's left fist swiftly found its way on top of the drummer's skull, making the brunette stagger in pain and stop her from saying more creepy things. Tsumugi was quite fascinated at the scene.

"Well, I'm quite surprised you have the attention span of reading newspapers or watching the news," Mio said sternly.

"That's rude!" muttered Ritsu as she gently rubbed her throbbing head. "Ugh, if only Yui was here, she'll back me up..."

"Don't put her in the middle of this," she added coolly as she brushed the locks off her shoulder before she spoke up again, "Anyways, let's cut to the chase. We barely practiced since the other week. I know that summer vacation is near but we still have the final exams before that too."

"True, but I'm worried more about Yui-chan," Tsumugi said with a concerned look on her usually bright face. "She already missed a lot in class."

"Why worry if we have Mio?" asked Ritsu assuringly as she displayed her carefree nature once again. "Her tutoring should do the trick!"

"You say it like my tutoring is always a hundred percent. Also, We should spend the remaining weeks in practicing for the school festival after the summer break."

"Our last school fesitval huh?"

Tsumugi clasped her hands together as she was done preparing tea, eyes shining as if it she was dreaming. "True. I wished we could stay as high school students forever."

A smile formed on Ritsu's face to such silly wish. "That can't possibly happen, y'know?"

"B-But that's not impossible, right?"

"Don't give me that look, Mugi."

Azusa felt her heart sunk as she heard the inevitable truth – the last year of the seniors would mean the last year of the light music club as well. Her senpais will graduate soon and the club would be in shambles again. She was not against tea time, as she herself enjoyed the luxury of those food brought by Tsumugi; her only wish that the club would be more focused on practicing rather than eating sweets and drinking tea.

She was only worried about the future of their band, wanting to improve more in playing their instruments. True, those unproductive things that occurred almost every day hindered their progress but those were memories that she would cherish forever in her life as a high school student. The time that she enjoyed being with her friends.

"It's still raining cats and dogs," said Mio as her eyes landed outside.

"It will probably take some more weeks before we could actually feel summer. I can't wait for that!" said Ritsu. "Where are we going this time? I mean, in our summer vacation?"

"It's too early to think about that."

"Aw, come on! How about you Azusa?"

"Any place will do as long as we could practice."

"That's right. Practicing our songs is the most important before everything else," the bassist stated. "Do I have to remind that we're the light music club?"

Tsumugi displayed a mysterious smile as she finished distributing all of the cups, gaining the attention of the others to her. Mio squirmed a little in the smile of their keyboardist that might held a lot of potential meaning. Ritsu leaned forward on her chair in great curiosity.

"Mugi?" uttered Ritsu, quite excited. "I just thought that you knew a more interesting place for this year's vacation..."

Tsumugi raised her index finger in response, still smiling. "Oh, give me more time to think about it. For now, we should focus on our studies first."

"Oh, I get it now. More like a surprise, isn't that right?"

"Yes! We will bring this up again after Yui's return to talk about our summer vacation."

"See? I'm glad Mugi knows her priorities, unlike you who only cared for yourself," said Mio sternly, crossing her arms.

"So, let's enjoy the rain while drinking warm tea today. I will never get bored of this in my whole life!" said Ritsu, raising her tea cup delightedly.

Mio sighed. "Are you even listening?"

* * *

><p>"How's the clothes, Hirasawa-san?" asked Reisen as they proceeded through the bamboo forest. So far, Yui was still in her great condition, displaying bliss as her arms swayed while walking. Her master's medicine was really something.<p>

"I don't know what to say, but it strangely fits! Thank you!"

Reisen gave an embarrassed smile. "I'm quite nervous if my clothes would fit on you."

"These are your clothes. There's no need to nervous, Rei-chan," said Yui as she returned the smile with her own. "I'm glad to wear this too. It's almost the same with our school uniform!"

Calling her by that nickname...but she strangely liked it coming from Yui. It was rather sincere and honest, unlike a certain friend of hers who devised traps and other pranks for fun.

"Tewi has this habit of digging pitfalls for me. Be careful when walking around to and from the mansion."

"Yup, that's Tewi alright. You two come along together well, huh?"

"Well, if you put it that way..."

"Too bad you're not destined to be sisters from the beginning."

The comment alone made Reisen's puffy tail twitch and suddenly felt chilly on her back as if a ghost passed through behind her. Was that a bad idea of thinking on that possibility? Its either Reisen was a youkai rabbit living alongside with her kind in the bamboo forest or Tewi was a moon rabbit who also served Reisen's previous masters, apparently important princesses in the capital, and pulling devious schemes to her partner, in duty or not.

"It's relatively safe to walk during the day here. Some of those annoying youkai only shows up when it's dark and pounce on you, even if you're a youkai too."

"Could you tell me more about the youkai?"

"Well, as Tewi probably mentioned to you, youkai is the more dominant species here in Gensokyo. Some of them looked like your typical animal while others could assume humanoid form as well, like the rabbits in the mansion. Bear in mind that not all youkai are friendly like us. Some are even addicted to human flesh, if I'm not mistaken. I think you would easily distinguish the dangerous ones even for seeing them for the first time. Then again, there are deceitful ones who would take advantage of its victims by being docile at first."

"Can I ask a question too?"

"Go ahead, Rei-chan! This is a good way to know each other~"

"You're really like that, huh? What I mean is, you seem to accept things openly, free of worries. Are you not worried at all that you're here to begin with? So far, the only place I know where humans could leave at peace in Gensokyo is in the human village. I heard that most humans would get eaten first before even reaching that safety zone. You could try the Hakurei Shrine,"

The guitarist could only stare back with a rather dubious look before clasping her hands together, beaming like she recalled something pleasant. Eating cake or practicing her guitar, perhaps?

"Ah, that's no problem~ That's why you're with me, right? Yagokoro-san made that decision because she has trust on you and the things that you can do. From that, I'm sure that you would be able to protect me from those scary youkai!"

Reisen winced a little, not expecting such straightforward remark. In fact, she felt warm inside. "But...I'm not capable of fighting..."

"But you could shoot awesome bullets out of your hand! You don't have to be so modest, Rei-chan! You won't even reach the village in the first place if you can't defend yourself."

At those moment, she felt that the carefree outsider now walking with her through the bamboo forest seemed to be a new, different person – way too different to the Hirasawa Yui she knew

"Did you saw me doing that?"

"Yeah. Back in the kitchen earlier. How do you do that?"

"My danmaku? It's kinda hard to explain..."

_Another smile formed on Reisen's face._

_What kind of person is this Hirasawa Yui anyway?_

* * *

><p>Kourindou was an antique shop situated between the human village and the forest which mostly sell fairly interesting stuff, most of them were from of the outside world. The shopkeeper, Morichika Rinnosuke, was working almost nonstop in the last few days organizing his inventory of bizzare items. Since half of those outside world stuff ran on electricity, they had no specific use other than serving those items as decoration in the shelves or just being kept for future use. It was not something that made him disappointed though. He also had ways of his own for that small problem.<p>

One of those altered versions of an outside world tool that he made ,which was also his first, was a portable electric lamp powered by magic and the sun's essence instead of electricity. It was a simple job for someone like him who could make magical artifacts. Then again, he wanted to work on something more complicated other than a simple device such as lamps. But that could wait for another time. He could only determine the use of a particular thing but other than that, he would need to research more on every tool's specific part before he could start making the necessary modifications. Yakumo Yukari was a great help to his questions about outside world goods, but she only comes at least twice a month in his shop, sometimes delivering some items when in a good mood.

The shop was fairly accessible to both human and youkai but he rarely get any customers at all, despite of his showcase of different goods that could never be found in Gensokyo. He always assumed that there should be at least one item in his inventory that would interest every customer. After all, they couldn't get anywhere of those things anywhere in Gensokyo. Visitors, sure, they were a lot of them in a regular basis but the term 'customers' had a completely separate meaning. His shop was sometimes used as a rain shelter for a few person he got acquainted with when they got caught by unexpected rain. Customer or not, he tends to welcome anyone with green tea as long as they wouldn't touch his valuable goods. Even if he didn't have much sales, he considered his business as a humble pastime too.

Did he had other choices besides that? At least he could have a hobby of his own.

"Rinnosuke-san? Are you there?" Reisen called out after knocking at the shop's door.

"Oh, it's you. Good Morning," greeted Rinnosuke after opening the door, wearing his usual kimono. He wasn't in his best condition just looking at his weary complexion from a few hours of sleep that he could spare in the previous busy days. "Well, it seems you brought a new interested customer with you."

"Not really. I'm just accompanying her," the guitarist replied with a smile. "I don't have money with me too."

"I see. Customer or not, you're welcome here. I'm Morichika Rinnosuke, the owner of this shop."

"Nice to meet you, Rinnosuke-san," said Yui as she bowed accordingly. "I'm Hirasawa Yui."

"The pleasure's mine." Rinnosuke managed a weary smile as he gestured inside his shop. "Please come inside. I take that you two just walked all the way here."

"Please excuse us!" Yui said as she entered first.

The two were welcomed by a bunch of different things here and there – a television set, three electric fans of varying sizes, an oven toaster, and even a portable game console displayed along with a few other devices like cellphones displayed in one layer of a shelf. The rest were just lying on the floor scattered, waiting to be sorted out according to their importance. Yui learned that Rinnosuke's store was the only store that showcased outside world items and other rare artifacts, especially of magic. Well, more like a small shop of different flavors in one. The place was randomly decorated as well - maybe because of the random things that could be found. What was fascinating were a few expensive appliances that she wondered what use could the shopkeeper get to them.

Yui noticed that there wasn't a single outlet to plug in some of the appliances. She didn't see any power lines outside either, pretty much the same to Eientei. Surely, the owner of the shop couldn't possibly use them conventionally. It seemed like those modern things weren't very useful anymore in Gensokyo and perhaps they use another alternative source of power to make up for it, like magic? If that was the case, the shopkeeper already used the electric fan from the start or lit a light bulb on the ceiling if he had one.

"Rinnosuke-san, are you the only one living here?" asked Yui as she finally grasped that the shopkeeper was the only person inside the shop. For one thing, the shop was located quite far from the human village.

"Yes, but someone would at least visit this place before closing time."

"That's nice. I wish I could live like that, but my sister would be worried."

Rinnosuke motioned to the small round table and asked them to sit on one of the three finely-crafted wooden chairs. On the table was a porcelain teapot together with a set of five cups of the same design and a half-read newspaper next to the tea set which she assumed that the shopkeeper was reading it until their arrival. "I'm sorry for this mess. I should make up my mind as quickly as possible of arranging these items."

"Well, we came here for a reason," said Reisen as she unpacked her bag, revealing a small electric stove. "First of all, I want to return this stove."

"Why? I spent nearly six months converting that item to put it some use."

"The rabbits would definitely get injured with this. I guess you won't need fire like it was lava coming out of an erupting volcano to cook something."

"Your point's understandable," Rinnosuke nodded once as he got a closer look of the stove. "I take that you just wanted some minor changes in this device?"

"Uh, yeah. Do that please. Other than that, it's really nice to have that stove."

"Very well. It's the only thing that I could do for you and your master making those medicines. It might take me a little while with all of these new things around me."

"Where did you get all of these?"

"The next day I woke up, there's this pile of outside world goods in the living room," Rinnosuke explained, placing the electric stove on a shelf behind the counter. "She's the only one who could do that kind of thing, right?"

"You mean, Yakumo-san? How generous of her, but suspicious at the same time."

"I remember that she was quite bored lately, that's why she tends to visit the outside world more and brings new things with her."

Yui nodded in accord as she sipped tea. "Yakumo-san sure is enjoying her life, huh?"

"I doubt that. You could never know her definition of_ having fun_." Reisen reached for a small medicine box and handed it over to the shopkeeper. "Oh, this is the medicine you requested from my master. She apologizes for the delay though."

"Ah, just what I needed. I thought she's really taking her time making these," said Rinnosuke as he opened the box containing a dozen of vials filled with green liquid in each of them.

"My master also told us that she couldn't make a sleep-reducing medicine like you suggested last week."

"I figured that somehow. I might even regret having a medicine like that in due time. I don't doubt about Yagokoro-san's ability either."

"Oh, master insisted that you should take that medicine everytime before sleeping. Returning to your nomal sleeping habit is still the best way rather than any medicine that could be made."

"I'll definitely keep that in mind. Anyways, do you have other business, if I might ask?"

"Say, do you have anything that the rabbits can play with? They needed it for their games later."

"Hm, I remember some but I hid them somewhere in the stockroom the other month. This might take a bit, how about some tea while you wait?" Rinnosuke offered as he pointed at the tea set.

Yui perked up after hearing tea in the shopkeeper's sentence. "Thank you, Rinnosuke-san!"

"Please wait for a moment then. This won't take long."

A full minute later of sipping tea and Reisen reading random, pointless articles in the newspaper, someone spoke up from outside the shop, "Morning, Kourin! I hope you don't mind if I borrow some of your new stuff today!"

A blonde girl opened the door casually as if she owned the place, without any word of intruding or not even using the custom of knocking at another place's door first. Casually, for the girl, would mean kicking the door open like she belonged in a SWAT team raiding a shop of contraband goods. She was around in the age bracket of Yui's, wearing an overall outfit resembling a traditional western witch from fantasy tales – large brimmed hat and dress with the broomstick accessory in one hand. She had an aura that made Yui remember the light music club's drummer, spontaneous and easygoing. The witch stopped midway as she noticed the two seated by the small round table at the corner, looking at her suspiciously. She eyed the two for some more seconds before casually waving a hand at them.

"Oh, and here I thought I'm the only one here..."

Yui calmed herself down. "And I thought it would be a stick up or something..."

"Hm? Wait," Reisen uttered as she tried to dig out a particular name from her memory. "Marisa, right?"

"Ah, my bad. Morning to you both too!" Kirisame Marisa, the ordinary black witch, greeted cheerily as she threw her broomstick to the corner where it always used to be whenever she came to visit the shop. "Where's Kourin? I'm here to take a look on his new items."

"He's still finding what we requested in the storeroom."

"Ah, I'm glad he finally got customers this time!"

Yui stared at the black and white witch from hat to shoes.

Again, she glanced back at the witch's hat once more as if she couldn't resist looking at it and know why it was like that in the first place. It appeared to be all fluffy and cute as if it was an extra large yummy marshmallow that was good to eat and at the same time, weird to be worn around when just having a walk in the neighborhood. It was almost twice the size of any usual witch hat that she saw in any costume-related conventions or events so far. "People in Gensokyo really like to wear weird costumes, huh?"

Yui had a sudden urge of requesting a costume to her homeroom teacher – similar to Marisa's dress. She might ditch the rest except for the large hat.

"Costumes? I don't know what are you talking about, but you're a fresh face around here, ya'know? Are you a rabbit too or something?" asked Marisa, removing her unusually large hat off her head and placing it on a nearby countertop. She noticed that the brunette's eyes appeared to be glued on her only until she took her hat off. "Also, my dress is not _that_ weird."

"She's just a human like you," Reisen simply replied.

"Oh, I didn't know that your mansion started to employ human maids. Neat!"

"She's not a maid either; just your typical outsider. She wanted to stay for awhile in our place."

"Heh? If she's an outsider, you might want to give her to Reimu as soon as possible. You never know what might happen to her next."

"No need. In fact, she's under the responsibility of Yakumo-san and us too."

Hearing the name of the gap youkai made her glance at the brunette again, quite curious why the gap youkai would be interested on an outsider like Yui. Whatever that reason was, it was nothing for her to be concerned about. Marisa shrugged. "Is that so? Much better, I guess. Saves some trouble for her and me. Not that I care~"

"She won't be long anyway. She just wanted to stay until the moon festival's finished."

"Are you really a witch?" Yui asked curiously.

"If you put it that way, yes. I'm the only magician in Gensokyo that uses flashy danmaku of overflowing elegance and beauty! My trademark specialty! No one could best that!"

"Wow! Magic! Can you do some tricks?"

"Yeah, you heard that right!" Marisa placed a clenched fist on her chest proudly. "What tricks, specifically?"

"Can you make a rabbit or bird pop out of your hat?" Yui eagerly suggested as she counted with her fingers. "How about making things vanish and revealing them in some other places?"

"E-Eh? I'm not into that kind of magic. My forte is to blow things up, ze!"

The brunette could only tilt her head to the side. "Aw, too bad! I think you're a great magician since you have that aura around you! I bet you could do something else!"

Marisa gave off a small blush. "Really?"

"How about a sample then? Anything! I want to see first-class magic that only you could do!"

"A sample trick, you say?" The black-white witch grabbed something in her skirt's pocket then grimaced. "Aw damn, I forgot my magic vials and stuff, but I know the best next thing!" Marisa raised her right hand and a swirling yellow-colored star projectile instantly materialized no larger than her hands as if it was an ordinary magic trick. "...Behold!"

Due to excitement like a child having a new toy to play with, Yui stood up and tried to grab the star from the black witch. "Waah~ Can I keep it? It's sooo cute!"

"Huh? Do you collect danmaku bullets? You're weird, y'know?" Marisa gave the projectile to the brunette. "I maybe a collector but I don't collect that kind of stuff."

"It feels all warm," Yui said, with her hands cupped around the star. "It reminds me of those glow-in-the-dark stickers..."

"It gets better! Try throwing it to that old kettle on that huge box."

Yui's curiosity buttons were pressed again but tilted her head in the exciting suggestion. "Why would I throw this?" Yui stared at the star then back to the black witch who gave her a thumbs up. "Ah, okay, if you say so..."

Reisen took notice as her danger senses took off in an instant. It was something that wouldn't end up well, especially when an ordinary black witch was involved. "Hirasawa-san? Don't -"

It was too late, much to the moon rabbit's regret. Yui threw it in a force stronger than needed, probably out of excitement, and struck the kettle off the box. However, the star projectile wasn't yet contented. The projectile quickly ricocheted around the room for a few times. Surprised, Reisen ducked under the table while Yui only stood as she admired the bouncing bullet that she thought harmless in any way. The volatile star knocked off a few display on the shelf, before it went straight to the right side of a large television screen. A bright flash followed as the projectile finally vanished. Marisa gave off a nervous whistle.

"Oopsie..."

"Reisen-san? Hirasawa-san?" They could clearly hear the anxious voice of the shopkeeper from the stock room. "W-What was that?"

"Oh, it's just me, Kourin! Continue whatever you're doing there!" Marisa quickly replied back.

"Marisa? What are you doing?" Reisen asked annoyingly. "The shopkeeper will be mad at us!"

"Eh? I did nothing!"

"You made her throw that!"

"What? I just showed her magic. Is that really all bad?"

"I-Is Rinnosuke-san going to get mad at me?" Yui worriedly asked, her voice trembling and eyes not blinking. "I broke the TV and..."

Marisa placed a hand on Yui's shoulder as she nervously laughed. "Nonsense! He'll understand that it was just a mere accident and..."

"This is my first time here...and...and..." Yui stared down to the floor, her hair covering her face, and whispered, "I-I feel like crying..."

"Aw, no! Please don't cry! What do you want me to do for you?" asked a flustered Marisa as she now grabbed both of the brunette's shoulders. She certainly knew whenever she overdid something. Yui sniffed as she wiped the tears escaping her eyes. "H-Hey, anything! Just say it!"

"Uhm, can you make me another one then?" Yui requested after she looked up to the blonde girl with teary eyes.

Marisa felt relieved as she confidently smiled as she stretched out an arm. "That's easy!"

"Seriously, Marisa. Don't give danmaku bullets to people just like that," said Reisen flatly.

Yui ignored Reisen's concern and raised her right hand. "I want a different color this time! I want a pink one!"

"Ah, that's no problem." With a few seconds of focus, Marisa made another similar star, this time, in Yui's requested color. "Just don't throw it like that again."

Upon receiving it, Yui brightened up. "Yay! Thank you! I'll call you Mari-chan from now on!"

"You're really weird but that works for me, I guess." Marisa sat on the last, unoccupied chair and rested her forearms on the table, looking at the reading moon rabbit. "I always come here but I rarely come across you. What's up?"

"Oh, we will have a party before this noon and we just asked things that can be used for the rabbit's games."

"A party, you say?" Marisa scratched her chin as she recalled the things that she needed to do for today. Realizing that she would only spend the rest of the day in the Hakurei Shrine, she looked at Reisen expectantly with faintly sparkling eyes. "Hey, you don't mind if I join in right? I won't make any trouble for you."

"Huh? That party is only for the rabbits. Well, I'm surprised that you could attend in any party as you wish."

Marisa paused for a moment. "Maybe I should wear rabbit ears as disguise? Ah, well...that wouldn't work. Anyways, there's always room for one more human, right?"

"Of course, that wouldn't work..."

For someone who always appeared at parties, Marisa seemed to be more dignified and proud than ashamed from her tone. It was not like she was going to do anything that would destroy the party. If there would be more food and drinks than anyone could take, she would happily invite herself in. She would be an interesting person to have in such events though, except for the occasional property damage and the like.

Reisen sighed, giving up to avoid further problems with the black witch. "I don't see the reason not to since its nothing important other than the fact that it was a day off for the rabbits. Knowing your reputation, I have this feeling that you'll still come even if I refused..."

"Heh. See? Even Sakuya doesn't mind that much anymore whenever there are celebrations in their mansion!"

"Marisa, what brings you here?" Rinnosuke asked as he finally got out of the stockroom, carrying a dusty cardboard box. Somehow, that came out of his mouth like it was recorded ages back, only to be played again everytime Marisa entered the shop. He pretty much expected that the witch would just visit him when got nothing to do in particular. Was Kourindou an interesting place to begin with? Probably anyone couldn't blame Rinnosuke for being very hospitable, accepting humans and youkai alike inside his shop and offering them tea while indulging them in idle talk.

"Eh? You sounded like you don't want me in your shop anymore!" Marisa groaned as she put up a pout. "That's harsh, you know!"

"I'm not yet done arranging all of these yet. Please don't touch them," Rinnosuke calmly replied.

"Are you implying that everything that I touch breaks?"

"Uhm, sorry about breaking your TV...I don't have any idea about this star thingie could do..." Yui sheepishly apologized as her body slightly shook, still holding the pink-colored star in her hands. "I-If I need to pay for..."

"There's no need for that." Rinnosuke smiled at the brunette as if it was nothing of importance. "I already have a lot of them."

"Really?"

The shopkeeper nodded. "Yes."

"B-But...it's...it's a plasma TV," Yui stuttered. The hole made by the projectile was indeed small but the whole screen wouldn't work all the same like before. How could she pay an expensive plasma display television? She still had to pay her medications from Eirin...

"So, that's what you call that? It seemed to be more larger but conveniently compact than the others, so I have a hard time knowing where to put it. Now it's broken, I won't be having that dilemma anymore." Rinnosuke placed the cardboard box on the floor. He then turned to the moon rabbit. "There's still more but I forgot where I store the others."

Reisen opened the box to find three decks of cards, two red-colored flying disks, a chess set, an obscure board game good for six persons, two pairs of badminton rackets with a couple of shuttlecocks and a seemingly new soccer ball straight from a sport store.

Yui looked at the moon rabbit worriedly as Reisen carefully brought the box up to her chest. "Rei-chan, I can help carrying them..."

"Sorry, but I can't possibly allow that. In fact, you shouldn't be here with me in the first place. I apologize for that..."

Yui smiled in response although feeling quite disappointed. "If you say so."

"Rinnosuke-san, I think this would do. Thank you for your time," Reisen said as she slightly bowed. "We will take our leave."

Marisa almost choked herself in the tea she was drinking. "What? Leaving already? I just got here!"

"You really need to go back now? Don't forget to send my thanks to Yagokoro-san. She's a lifesaver," Rinnosuke replied as he fixed his glasses. "Oh, do you need a hand?"

"Ah, I could manage. Besides, it's not that heavy," replied Reisen then turned to the brunette. "Let's go, Hirasawa-san."

"You won't finish your tea?"

Rinnosuke shook his head. "Don't need to worry about a small problem like that. I completely understand that you need to go back. Perhaps we could enjoy drinking tea some other time."

"Really? I'll remember to stop by here every time then! I'm sure that I won't break your things anymore!"

"I think I have no choice but to tag along now," said Marisa as she stood up and fetched her hat.

"Fine. Just don't do anything that would make master mad, okay?"

"Before I forgot..." Marisa glanced at the display of a variety of portable devices on the shelf. Since she was always visiting Kourindou, she got to know some of those outside world items. Eventually, something hidden caught her eye – a lime-colored rectangular device with buttons separated by an LCD screen at its center. She slid the glass cover open and quickly took the game console from its makeshift stand, knocking a few others out of their positions. "Hey Kourin, you don't mind if I take this one, right?"

"You're already holding it," Rinnosuke sighed, knowing the girl well enough that he couldn't do anything much if Marisa would 'borrow' something from him. "That's included with the new arrivals last week. But it seems to be only limited to entertainment purposes. Besides that, you won't be able to get that work without supplying it again with electricity."

"So, the battery's dead huh?" Marisa quickly lost her interest. "Why not make it something similar to that stove? Somehow the same concept in using a small reactor as battery, quite similar on the way I add more juice to my sparks with the hakkero."

"It's a lot easier when you think about it. For a delicate device such as that, I need someone or something who could at least tell me the function of each part. Also, disassembling that seemed to be a problem already, which needs proper tools and knowledge in that process alone."

"Isn't that a PSP? Ricchan used to have one," Yui suddenly spoke up, recognizing the portable console in the witch's hands.

"Y-You know that device?" asked Rinnosuke, quite surprised. "Ah, I see. You're an outsider after all."

Yui nodded. The shopkeeper seemed to like outsiders for some reason.

"Don't sweat it, Kourin. I'll take that thing some other time if you managed to make it work," said Marisa as she returned the PSP to its original place.

"I already expected that you would say that. It can't be helped..."

"Yay, Kourin~"

"Are you going with us or not?" asked Reisen, getting impatient and tired of carrying the box.

"H-Hey, you can't start without me!"

* * *

><p>Reimu Hakurei, the shrine maiden of talent and idleness, sat by the table as she ate a delectable slice of chessecake with a fork. The heavenly taste was a good treat for her mouth as it perfectly matched the serene atmosphere around her, which was present as always in the shrine grounds. The soothing sound of the wind chime hanging above the door made her quite drowsy.<p>

_I must say, this cake sure is delicious. I never tasted a cake like this before. Still, I wonder what is she up to now?_

_She can't just pull humans in Gensokyo as she pleases._

A tear in space slowly opened and the youkai of boundaries carefully stepped out of the gap. Being aware of Yukari's presence, the shrine maiden just yawned and stretched her arms to fight her afternoon sleepiness without even looking at her new guest. Smiling, Yukari sat down in front of Reimu.

"What is this? It seems you already know me so much that you could even anticipate my next visit?" Yukari asked, slightly amused as a slice of chessecake and tea was already prepared on the table, leaving her the only option of joining Reimu in her tea time.

Reimu, eyes still focused on the scenery outside, lazily replied, "That one's supposed to be for Marisa but she's not here yet."

"Are you expecting her to come here?"

"Like she always do almost everyday. I'm sure you know that."

"Oh, how about me?"

"I don't care. You can just pop out of nowhere if you will."

"Don't be so blunt, my dear Reimu. I rarely visit you these days..."

"If it weren't for those sweets you gave me yesterday, I'd chased you out of the shrine now."

"Don't you find the sweets very delectable that even the celestials will crave for such treat? Apparently, I got acquainted and befriended an interesting outsider."

This time, Reimu directed her eyes to the gap youkai. "Oh, since when did you start being friendly to humans?"

"She knows the existence of youkai and other nonhuman beings. Also, she's the one who gave me all of those goods to me yesterday," Yukari casually replied as she took the cup of tea in front of her.

The shrine maiden managed her thoughts as she closed an eye, feeling sorry to the unfortunate human. "Why do I get the feeling that you're just using her?"

"My dearest Reimu, you shouldn't make assumptions like that. They hurt me."

"Stop calling me that. Aren't you suppose to be doing something else, like sleeping?"

"Oh, but I just woke up in the last hour. I just want to chat with you this time..."

"It's true that it will get boring if there's no one around." Reimu gave up as she took another bite from the cheesecake. "What is it you wanted to talk about? It's better be good..."

"Reimu, are you aware that the youkai of the outside world is not as fortunate as the youkai here?"

"That's a bit sudden for a starting topic."

"Pardon me. Should I start from a lighter one?"

This was something new to Reimu and certainly got her interest, especially that it concerns about the youkai. She was not a youkai herself but her world revolves around them and she tends to get the latest news from them. "No, tell me more about it."

"Youkai of the outside world were just as powerful as the native youkai of Gensokyo but they were constantly hunted down by a few humans who are widely-aware of other non-human presence moving around them in the society, regardless if those youkai are peaceful or not."

Reimu raised an eyebrow. "Why would the humans exterminate those youkai that haven't done anything yet? It's true that they get annoying from time to time, but you can't just remove them from existence for that reason alone."

"I'm sure that you're clearly aware of the youkai's history even earlier than the creation of this world of ours – a quite devastating one indeed. Initially, the sealing of Gensokyo with the help of a handful of volunteers was done in order to contain those dangerous youkai that once wandered in the outside world. This prevented the further downfall of what was left to both parties. Fortunately, things changed in time and youkai eventually settled down although not entirely as their existence would be for nothing. From what I have observed so far in the outside world, there are some who retained their grudge towards the youkai until now and exterminate one without any remorse. Knowing the nature of youkai such as I, we are not to be blame for being what we are."

Reimu felt coldness enveloping her body, making her sip from her cup.

Was she any different from those youkai exterminators?

"On the contrary, a few would even approach them without any ill intent like they were no different than humans, just like my new human friend. A benevolent, innocent girl at that."

"As long as those humans wouldn't be eaten first, it'll be fine, I suppose."

"You'll be surprised. They're not that ordinary as you might think, some of those humans, that is."

"Uh-huh. The outside world is really something."

Yukari went for a brief pause as she sipped tea. "What intrigues me is that a small covert group, where a select few of youkai are also members, successfully controlled and maintained the youkai's activity in their place for quite some time now. They managed to keep the problems related to youkai at its minimum, making a particular incident more or less unheard when it comes to the local news. The more civilized youkai are allowed to mingle with them but not necessarily considered them equal to humans, knowing that a youkai is still a youkai in the end. Some opportunists would even take advantage of youkai's ability for their own. Of course, these are only restricted for those who are brave or lucky enough to know this fact."

"It must be hard for them, unlike the youkai here that could freely create any incident they want. Maybe those outside youkai would, unless there will be someone kind enough to beat it."

"Yes. Also, did you know that some of them even knew Gensokyo existence?"

"Huh, really?"

"Well, Gensokyo was once part of the outside world. It shouldn't be that surprising since some of the current residents here are originally from outside and they knew about this place, or rather dimension if you ask other's viewpoint. Also, the problem is not all in the human-youkai relations."

"What do you mean by that?"

"As you already know, the outside world doesn't have something that serves as some kind of limiter or means to settle dispute without bloodshed. In our case, Gensokyo is quite big for a world enclosed by a barrier but the system was easily implemented, even for those who just recently entered here. If you have observed, youkai could still make whatever they want but this time, with the spellcard system you suggested to them. Funny as it seems, we tend to abuse this system over trivial things that, in fact, doesn't need to be fought over with. The system you made turned out to be a pastime to most of us."

"As if all youkai would actually listen to me. You did your part too, even if I'm not aware of it." Reimu smiled. Indeed, the spellcard system became a widespread entertainment for everyone; a fair game that could give anyone a chance to win regardless of their differences in power. "Ah! I remembered one time when Marisa and I fought on what ingredients to put in the hot pot last fall. Good times..."

"Is that the one where almost half of the shrine were singed by Kirisame's antics?"

"Oh, so you remembered that too, huh?"

"Going back. If we are to compare Gensokyo to the outside world, our place is somewhat on the...let's just say the regional level, it will be harder to impose a fair common rule to a wider scale, much less to the individuals who are too stubborn to accept a system such as ours. I'll be frank - there are humans and youkai that would kill for the sake of power, even if they were to face their same kind. When they fight, they tend to use everything they have, giving much straightforward result unlike in a spellcard battle; like its either one falls first. Simply to say, they don't want to be under of someone else."

"That's scary. I thought that kind of thinking was already gone? It's quite one-sided..."

"Ah, I didn't mean to scare you. Those are what I have observed in the previous years as a spectator of those tales. This isn't _really_ a problem to begin with, but when they have the rules with set limitations, casualties, if not be avoided, will drastically reduce. The outside world has yet to change..."

Reimu remained silent until she finished her tea and returned her gaze outside. It was surprising for her to hear the gap youkai conversing about things of the outside world.

"Hm, is that your true purpose of coming here? I felt that you left out a few other key parts..."

"I'm merely sharing my thoughts and sentiments since you are Gensokyo's shrine maiden. It's nice to know a thing or two about today's outside world, don't you agree? Also, like I said before, please don't make such assumptions just yet."

"That's nice and all...but my only concern is you as of now. You keep doing weird things, just like yesterday."

Yukari ignored the shrine maiden as she took the last piece of what was left of the cheesecake with her fork. "Oh, I hope your friend wouldn't mind if I already ate her cheesecake. Next time, I will share something new to you. I'm absolutely sure you'll like it."

"I think she won't be coming today..."

* * *

><p>"This looks like fun!"<p>

"I wonder what kind of celebration they're having?"

"Apparently, it looks like a party exclusive to youkai rabbits."

Behind the thick bushes, three small figures watched the youkai rabbits enjoying every second of their simple party; eating, playing and singing together like they never done it for a long time. The sky already turned to an red-orange hue but the party seemed like it was just starting. The fairies were just collecting vegetables and other ingredients inside the bamboo forest when they stumbled on the lively party outside Eientei before going home. As they weren't in the hurry to begin with, they hid themselves outside the manor's perimeter. Apparently, some of the rabbits decided to play catch with the flying disk, throwing it with more strength than necessary.

As they learned from their experiences, a particular rabbit could actually see them despite of their camouflage. It was better to be sure than everything else. Also, why are they hiding if they didn't do anything bothersome yet? After all, the three were quite known for coordinating each of their respective ability to their schemes, making them more formidable than most of their kind if they were together.

"Watching them drink sake made me want some too," said the sun fairy wearing a dress of red and white, eyeing a group of rabbits drinking merrily like it was their last party. "I want one later..."

The blonde moon fairy wearing a white dress with a puffy black ribbon below the collar and small ones following on an interval, glanced at her, amused. "Heh. Didn't you just drink like there's no tomorrow the other night? Then, you'll get another terrible hangover."

"That's unusual," The black-haired star fairy with a blue and white dress muttered to herself as her eyes followed a single person in the party before them.

"What's unusual, Star?" Sunny Milk took noticed and returned her eyes to the crowd of youkai rabbits. "That rabbit? Yeah, she's a ditz. She already wasted three plates full of food while serving them."

"No, that one," Star Sapphire said as she pointed at a brown-haired girl in an outfit similar to Reisen. "She seemed to be the only human in there."

"You're right. She has guts to attend in a youkai party."

"Obviously, she's a friend of those rabbits."

"I know that. I was just wondering why is she there in the first place. This is a youkai party in the middle of a bamboo forest!"

"Oh, wait. Isn't that Marisa?" Luna Child pointed as she saw the blonde witch busy tasting all of the food in the banquet as if she was a food inspector. "She's invited too?"

"Nah, she always go where the booze are. Yeah, that might be it!"

"Well, that's Marisa, alright..."

"This is a chance for us to sneak in the mansion!" Sunny announced as she raised her fist in the air. "Didn't you remember what Marisa-chan told us about this mysterious mansion awhile back?"

"About the artifacts from the moon? I remembered reading an old newspaper about an expo they held here," replied Luna, crossing her arms to her chest.

The star fair nodded in accord. "If we could find the moon's treasury inside, it would be one of our greatest achievement so far."

"Eh? It's kinda risky. Also, it may not look like it, but the pharmacist is very scary."

"Hey, Luna. You've been collecting stuff from the moon, right? This is your chance!"

"I guess we could easily pass everything else as long as you two keep your abilities on," Star reminded as she stepped forward, appearing to be more absorbed on getting inside the mansion. "Shall we get going now?"

Sunny shot a suspicious look to the star fairy as she wanted to convey something. "You say that yet you're the first who vanishes when we got ourselves in a tight spot."

The star fairy fixed the large blue ribbon on her head before she gave the sun fairy a sly smile. "Don't worry. We can't be caught that easily this time."

"Then take the lead."

With the star fairy's cue, they stood up and carefully stalked around the mansion for an available entrance for them to use. Somewhat a cakewalk for them since they almost left no traces of life as they continued their way which includes both light refraction and silencing abilities. Glad that they found a window that was opened earlier by a youkai rabiit, they entered the mansion and found themselves in a room where a small table was sitted in the center and a few landscape paintings hanging on the wall. They scanned the interior for anything important before thinking of their next plan.

"The area's clear. I think all of the rabbits are in the other side of the mansion," Star announced as she finished 'viewing' the area around them using her own ability. "Let's start the search in the other rooms."

"Okay then. Just tell us if someone's around," Sunny reminded as she slid the door open. The hallway was empty and quiet as expected but they had to be careful nevertheless.

Luna glanced around as they walked on the hallway. Some of the rooms were opened as well. "For one thing, this mansion isn't that big compared to the vampire's mansion but it feels nice living here."

"Maybe we could try working here too," Star suggested, peeking inside the room that seemed to be empty. "Is it just me or this mansion has more empty rooms from what I have assumed."

Luna shook her head as she recalled that idea. It was rewarding at first but wouldn't do good for them in the long run. "I don't like that idea. Not anymore."

"Probably not. That's why they have all of those rabbits, right?"

After checking a few other rooms that had no clear purpose or eye-catching stuff to take, they finally entered a room which had more things, particularly furniture, inside the large interior compared to the others. A cabinet and a bookshelf were at the other side of the room. There was small desk with a couple of papers scatter on it was placed in one corner near a comfy bed; the white bed sheet and pillows still messy, suggesting that the person who slept on the bed didn't have to arrange it. From there, the moon fairy noticed something that stood out from the bland other things they already saw so far.

"Hey, I think you need to see this!" said Luna, pointing at a string instrument behind her.

"It's just a weird-looking guitar," Sunny said, somehow expecting more than an instrument. "Should we even bother taking that?"

"Is this really an instrument from the moon?"

"Well, we haven't explored much of the place yet. There might be something more interesting than that guitar," Star replied, uninterested.

"True, but we can't possibly take them all in one run."

For a few seconds, the whole frame of the guitar flashed a varying shades of red. This made the fairies hid behind the other side of the bed.

"W-Woah, what was that? You guys saw it glow red, right?" Sunny asked, slightly astonished. "Right?"

Luna stared at the guitar while thinking for an answer. "Maybe it's possessed with a spirit? Or maybe it's just like that..."

"It might be a cursed item!"

"It's really shiny and well taken care of. It seems like an important thing for them to have," Star said as she examined the instrument from all sides. "We should take what we find, whatever it is."

"You seemed very eager this time, Star," said the sun fairy.

Luna suddenly called out as she saw the star fairy reaching out for the instrument, "Star! Don't touch it!"

"Huh? I already did..."

"Are you sure that instrument's not cursed? I mean, we won't get stuck with bad luck or anything, right?"

The star fairy shrugged, frowning in response. "Of course, you shouldn't keep a cursed item carelessly if this was the case. The people living in this mansion should know their own stuff well."

Sunny tried to lift the guitar using both of her arms. "Hmph, this is heavy! Who could actually use this instrument?"

"Someone who is definitely not a fairy?" replied Star as her thoughts began to trail away.

The sun fairy rolled her eyes as she kept her grip to the guitar's body. "Oh, thanks for the info. Really much appreciated it. I'm sure you two don't mind helping me with this thing?"

"Luna, can you help her with that?" Star pleaded, hands placed together as she stared at the moon fairy. Before Luna could say anything, the black-haired fairy spoke again, "Someone's coming, probably in this room."

"Eh? No joke?"

"Hmm..." Star paused for a few seconds. "Right about...now."

Sunny just laughed as she gave the two a thumbs up. "Hahaha! Why worry if no one but Reisen could see us? She's busy tending the rabbits outside."

"Good point, but what if...?"

A girl wearing a blazer with its matching skirt was standing at the door with an astonished look on her face. She couldn't believe what she was seeing now. The fairies froze in their place without moving a muscle; their reactions somehow the same with Yui, especially Sunny Milk who was supposedly generating their camouflage.

"Huh, Gitah? When did you learn to float like that?" asked Yui, taking a couple of steps backwards as her guitar appeared to be slightly swaying in the air.

"Can she see us? That can't be!" exclaimed Sunny, balancing herself with her arms wrapped around the guitar in front of her.

"Oh my, we've been compromised. She isn't supposed to see us," Star said in her usual composure, not entirely concerned about their situation. "So much for saying that motivation earlier."

"This isn't fair! I felt like my ability is not so rare this days..."

"Maybe you should try some new tricks in your ability then?"

"What are we waiting for? Let's run for it!" Luna shouted as they charged to the door, the guitarist stepping aside in amazement, and raced down the hallway.

"Ah! Wait! Where are you going? Don't leave me here~," Yui called out as she followed her guitar. "I'm not good at playing tag!"

"What in the world is happening to your power, Sunny? She's still following us!" Luna cried as they raced on the hallway. "Did you eat something expired again?"

"No, I'm not that stupid! Don't tell me that she's like Reisen too!" replied Sunny, almost stumbling as she ran while carrying the guitar. "Also, even if we're indoors, it still doesn't make any sense to me!"

Star shook her head. "I don't think that's the case. I can tell that she could only see the instrument, not us."

"Any object in my field of influence should be invisible too!"

"I don't know more besides the fact that she could only see the instrument."

"What I can see now is nothing! This guitar's in the way!" Sunny complained, then slightly stumbled forward, almost falling face first.

Yui stopped as she watched her guitar to recover after the fall before it quickly scampered again as if nothing happened. "Oooh , I knew you're like me, clumsy Gitah! We're really soulmates!"

"C-Clumsy? Who's clumsy?" asked Sunny in an agitated tone, doing her best not to glance back in contempt.

"I'm sure she's not referring to us," Star remarked as a smile crossed her face. "Why am I having fun again?"

"S-Shut up! Why don't you carry this instrument instead!"

Luna interrupted the two. "Hey, you two can discuss that later. At this rate, the other rabbits would take notice of our entry here!"

The three made it out of the mansion as far as their legs could carry them after finding another exit and hurried back to the bamboo forest. Yui was not yet done in the chase either, determined to catch her beloved guitar.

"Gitah, Wait for me! Are you mad at me or something? We can talk about your problems without running like this! I just recently recovered and you're doing this to me?" Yui cried. "What do you want me to do for you? Am I that selfish for eating your share of cake everytime you're not looking?"

"She's persistent, huh? So, that's really her instrument," said Luna as she did her best not to trip or sprain anything in that situation. She was more likely to get herself in a bad situation.

The star fairy glanced back. "Likely. It's good that she's the only one following so far. I thought we already alarmed the other rabbits."

"Don't go! I promise that I will be the most loyal partner you'll ever have in this world!" shouted Yui once again.

Sunny was falling behind among the three, clearly not enjoying the course of events. "She just keep saying nonsense! Luna, why didn't you erase her sound anyway?"

The moon fairy who had the clever ability of removing sound in a limited area around her just smiled as if she just thought of the idea just now. "Ah, no reason. She's quite funny."

"She's not! She's annoying!"

With a teasing wink, The star fairy chipped in. "You're no fun, Sunny."

"Gitah! Don't leave me yet! I'm not ready for this! At least give me time to think more!"

"Gyah! I don't know what's happening now but I can't continue like this! I can't carry this thing anymore longer!" Sunny was almost ready to collapse. Plus, she wasn't interested in the guitar anyway.

"W-What are you implying now?" asked Star, glancing back at sun fairy.

"Why am I carrying this in the first place again? Sorry, but it's for the better!"

* * *

><p>"Tewi, have you seen Hirasawa-san?" Reisen asked the rabbit of good fortune who was enjoying herself with sake while playing cards with a few youkai rabbits. "She suddenly disappeared half an hour ago..."<p>

"Nope, didn't see her around here~," Tewi cheerily replied as her world started to change form. The wonders of excessive sake. "Hey, wanna play too? Punishment game for the loser~"

"No, thanks." The moon rabbit nervously glanced around once more. "If master knew about this, I'll be in trouble again."

"Want some sake?"

"I think what I had earlier is enough..."

"Suit yourself," said Tewi after finishing another cup of warm sake in a single gulp. "Ah, drinking's really good after working hard."

"You hardly worked at all. We're about to finish when you took over..."

"Okay, I get it. Just keep your voice down. I think the sake got into your head now~"

"Look who's talking..."

"You're just a cranky moon rabbit who doesn't have a friend to play with~"

"This isn't good," muttered the moon rabbit, completely ignoring Tewi. "Why am I the only one who gets punished if Tewi's the one looking after her?"

"Don't worry! She's old enough to know things! Knowing that girl, she'll come back when she feels hungry again!"

"Tewi, you shouldn't drink too much sake. We still have preparations for tomorrow's..." Reisen stopped midway as she realized something that was surprisingly normal. "Ah, go ahead. As if you're going to help me anyway. I hope you get a terrible hangover later so you wouldn't get in the way."

"Right, whatever Rei-chan."

* * *

><p>"I think we lost her. She's not following anymore," Star announced, catching her breath as she propped herself to the nearby bamboo. She then turned to her friends and noticed something missing. "Where's the guitar?"<p>

"I left it behind!" Sunny replied with a scowl as she collapsed to the ground, wiping the sweat on her forehead with the sleeve of her dress. "What so important about an instrument like that anyway? We're not musicians..."

"What's important is we can just fly away instead! Why did we ran all the way here in the first place?" Luna deeply gasped as she sat tiredly on the grass.

"Good point," Star muttered as she placed her index finger on her chin. "Why didn't I think of that? We might even bring that instrument at home. It looked pretty shiny too for a good display."

The sun fairy shot another deadly look to the black-haired fairy. "Something tells me that you really intended to ran in the first place!"

"A wasted opportunity for us," the moon fairy added. "Maybe we should continue our vegetable hunt instead of doing that. Well, you know, I don't care anymore..."

"We didn't lose anything, so, it's not _that_ bad," the sun fairy pointed out with her index finger raised.

Star's eyebrows were drawn closer to one another as she remembered something else. "Wait, who's carrying our veggie basket earlier?"

"I don't remember anything..." Sunny gave an embarrassed smile. "Oh, good. We left them behind..."

"Star, can you get them? You're the least tired among us," asked Luna, now lying with spread arms.

"Maybe I would rather wait for you instead," Star replied with a wink. "I might get caught if I returned there..."

"You just don't want to..."

* * *

><p>"I'm lost," Yui muttered to herself as she was walking in circles for almost an hour in the bamboo thicket. Although that she kept moving forward, she felt that there was no progress made. This made her wonder why do those weird people need to choose and build a mansion in such a remote location in the first place. Now that she think more about Tewi's stories, it was something to do with Kaguya and Eirin for hiding from their pursuers back in the moon. It was a crazy story to begin with but there were no reasons for Yui to have doubts to it.<p>

Chasing her floating guitar wore her out too. Why would her guitar do crazy things now? She was sure that she didn't drink any sake during the party to make out that it was real. Importantly, she was thankful that the guitar gave up floating aimlessly.

The Bamboo Forest of Lost was known to challenge anyone who enters without losing their sense of direction. The thicket was mostly inhabited by rabbits here and there but other youkai also lived inside, waiting for unlucky preys to wander hopelessly in the superficially repetitious thicket. Yui admitted herself that she was no good in navigation. She often get lost in a foreign place and just hoped for her friends to find her before things gets worse.

Laying down the situation at hand, she had no contact with the others back in Eientei. Also, she didn't have her cellphone with her and Ui won't be able to find her way to Gensokyo just to fetch her. She was running out of time as darkness started to envelop the bamboo forest. Most youkai of the dark would awaken soon and begin the night with a tasty meal.

The only thing she knew was to find a way to get out of the thicket, return back to Eientei or Reisen and Tewi could find her. Unfortunately for her, this option was crossed out immediately.

If she only knew how to fly, it wouldn't be a problem at all.

She could hear eerie sounds around her as she felt her heart racing. She learned from both Tewi and Reisen that the bamboo forest was a dangerous place at night but the only thing she could do now was to continue onwards. Staying in one place wouldn't help her either way.

Yui's heart took a quick break from blood circulation as a large wolf-like youkai appeared from the darkness a few feet in her right. Its mouth was foaming and growling hungrily.

_My first youkai encounter out in the field has finally arrived!_

_This is like one of Ricchan's games! Except I don't have any weapons like swords or bows or guns or..._

Her thoughts bursted almost instantly as the youkai slowly crept towards her. She heard from Yukari that youkai eats humans and that was definitely bad news for her. A wolf and a wolf youkai made no difference as sighting a human means having food for their dinner table. Like any other person would do, Yui could scream for help, but that might only make the situation worse by attracting other scary creatures in the dark and probably start a battle royal with her as grand prize instead. Trying to outrun the youkai was not the best option either, as it would only delay the expected outcome. The only thing she had that moment was her guitar, unfortunately not a weapon to be used in the first place. Well, guitars could be made a great smashing weapon but Yui was in her right mind not to give the guitar any scratches, deformities or bloodstains.

She would almost forget it if she didn't feel the bulge on her blazer - the star projectile she got from Marisa!

With one final hope, she pulled the star from the pocket and assumed a battle stance of her own.

"You think I'm not armed? Take a look at this!" Yui squealed as she thrust her weapon forward.

The wolf youkai was not fazed even if it did stop to distinguish the object Yui was holding. In fact, it made the youkai more cautious, at the same time angry...

"I'm warning you! Not another step!"

The wolf youkai was continued its advance. Yui was within its reach now...

"This would hurt! You asked for this!"

Gathering her strength to her right arm, she threw the projectile to the youkai - the strongest that she could give.

Thankfully for the wolf youkai, it didn't have to move at all to dodge Yui's attack. It went to the cluster of bamboos before it exploded in a bright flash. The only thing the guitarist could do was to sit on the ground in defeat. Well, it was a good thing that the star didn't explode earlier or it could probably make a hole in her middle.

"O-Okay...I kinda expected that..."

The wolf youkai lunged forward to deliver the debilitating strike as she closed her eyes in fear and started to thank everyone who helped her for extending her life. It was quite funny. She thought that death was really trailing her from the beginning. and embarassing for her that she was saved from an accident which was a step away from death, only to be eaten by a youkai.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it, really!"

Nothing happened...

Then she heard another voice.

"Get your filthy claws away from her. Touch her, or you'll meet your end!"

To her surprise, a seemingly incorporeal girl was floating in front of her as she opened her eyes. She had shoulder-length chocolate hair and wearing a more casual style of kimono with note and cake imprints everywhere. The wolf youkai was sent off a few yards back before resuming to its usual stance. It appeared to be threatened but it wouldn't give up yet as it began to stalk around them cautiously, looking for an opening to be used. The spirit girl's eyes followed the movements of the youkai and sighed nonchalantly. She had no time to waste now.

"Ah, ah, ah! Don't you even think about it! You'll just get yourself injured!" The spirit girl threatened as she waved a finger at the youkai then rubbed her chin in thought. "Wait, I already attacked. Okay then, I'll punish you more until you get your lesson!"

For most ordinary youkai, verbal threats had usually no effect for them whatsoever, unless you materialize a pink orb of destructive magic and hurling it towards a tree, just like the spirit girl did. Naturally, the tree was still standing after the simple explosion but the surrounding bamboo was scorched in the process. The youkai seemed to get the subtle message and decided to call it a day as it walked away in defeat and without having a human meal for the night.

Yui felt bad for the youkai as she herself detest getting hungry like it was a hard math test, especially when the food was just in your reach but could never be eaten. Definitely, it wouldn't do good either if she would be in someone's dinner menu either. Do all youkai eat cake too? Yukari got enthralled by the sweets; maybe it would do the same to the others? If she would go with Tsumugi next time, her hypothesis would be worth a try. For her, Gensokyo might become a better world if they promote eating cake instead of humans.

Is that even a good idea? Chubby youkai wouldn't be so rare anymore...

"Good! That takes care of that," said the spirit as she turned to Yui. "Hirasawa-sama, are you okay? Do you have any injuries?"

"W-Who are you?" Yui asked as she slowly stood up.

"Oh...pardon me. I should introduce myself properly." The girl straightened her body and gave the awestruck Yui a smile. "I'm a _tsukumogami_ conceived from your guitar. I should thank you for taking good care of me from the very start. I am in your debt."

Yui took the time to direct her eyes to her instrument were as an unusual glow of red enveloped its entire form. "Eh? Tsukumo-what?"

_...How should I explain to her? I hope this doesn't confuse her more. Maybe this would do..._

"Beings, more like spirits, that come to life made possible by the love and care that the owner gives to that particular item," said the floating spirit; apparently not good in explaining things. "Uh...Basically, I am the product of your hard work to your guitar."

"Ah...so that's how it works then? If I put a lot of love in a particular thing, a spirit will be born from it?"

_It's a good thing she doesn't think much of things like these..._

"Not really. There's a lot of factors for an artifact spirit to..."

"Uh...you're Gitah?" The guitarist asked as she stared at the artifact spirit in great interest. "Y-You're a...girl..."

The spirit embarassedly flushed. "I...I'm sorry that I didn't reach your expectations, Hirasawa-sama, but I will serve you well."

"Hmm...It's kinda awkward if I kept calling you Gitah. Do you have a name?"

"Isn't Gitah good enough? Besides, I'm used to that name anyways."

Yui stared at the girl once more before she slightly nodded in accordance. "Okay...I'll think of a better name soon since you're a girl. But first, we need to get out in this bamboo forest."

"Yes. It's dangerous to be out this late. More youkai might appear in our way but as long as I'm here, nothing would harm you," assured the spirit girl with a small smile. "After all, I'm here to protect you from any danger."

"Don't you have something that could help us out of here?" asked Yui expectantly.

"Unfortunately, my powers are not of pathfinding and the like. I'm afraid we should continue onwards until we find our way back the mansion or to the village Inaba Tewi-san told you about."

"So we don't have other choices..."

"Let us find the way out then."

"Aw...I'm going to miss Reigetsusai." Yui childishly pouted then she pointed at the spirit girl in an accusing manner. "Next time, don't just rush off to somewhere else! I'll be worried!"

The spirit girl was on the verge of crying, nervously waving both of her hands in front of her. "I-I'm sorry! You missed some details about that part. I really...I didn't mean to run away on my own accord!"

"Uhm...I was just kidding..."


	4. Shared Motivation

**/Notes/**

Welcome! Welcome! Do you care for some tea and snacks during your stay? Uh...is that a no? Is that a…sharp-looking spear in your hand?

A-Ah...I'm not in trouble right? I'm terribly sorry for stalling this update. I guess I can't promise for a faster update now, eh? What's important now is that the fourth chapter is finally here! Yes, finally! Just don't impale me with that dangerous thing…o-okay?

Well, concerning about this chapter (another lengthy one), I did a couple of experimenting here and it turned out to be acceptable, at least for my standards. I had fun while doing so too! I hope you people don't mind these minor adjustments. Oh, look out with the surge of characters too~

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4 : Shared Motivation<strong>

* * *

><p>The night continued like the previous others. The bright, prominent moon gave ample light to the whole of Gensokyo as the stars gave their dim share of brilliance in the dark sky. By that point, the youkai of the night began their usual affairs unlike to most of the humans in the village who were in a rush to finish their remaining tasks for tomorrow, save for those stores and shops that were intended to be open the whole night, especially for youkai customers. In fact, the day was just starting for them as it would be busier and livelier with the full moon the next night.<p>

A youkai wearing blue and white, her tattered dress slightly charred in some parts also including an almost detached sleeve hanging on her arm, was having her usual routine of flying above Gensokyo's landscape. She just liked the gentle cool breeze as she sped through the air as if cleaving it on purpose.

Seeing her like that was a natural occurrence, especially when invoking the wrath of a more powerful target of her schemes, like the shrine maiden who just happened to be enjoying her usual afternoon tea time in her shrine's porch. The shrine maiden didn't need to hold back as she would allow herself a few minutes of exercise with a quick spellcard battle.

Tatara Kogasa was an umbrella youkai with high hopes and enthusiasm despite of her past as an ordinary purple umbrella. Her self-proclaimed career of scaring and surprising people was her life's calling. So far, her efforts seemed to be at naught as she didn't have much success so far.

After arriving at her workplace during the morning, she learned that today was a day off for her. It was either that she was not informed beforehand or she just completely forgot. It was not more than a month since she took the job anyway. It would be considered a waste of effort for coming there as she was currently lodging in the human village. It was not like she had a lot of things to do but that only means more time to get into her _actual_ job, something that she always believed that a true youkai must possess or all would be in vain.

She stopped as she rummaged the contents of her waist bag and took out a pocketbook filled with gruesome youkai tales. She happened to found some of those books in a certain antique shop and happily bought one, hoping to find new tricks that would definitely give her victim a scare that she wished for. She furiously flipped the pages until she found a small ruffled sheet of paper with a couple of persons scribbled on it, including the Shrine Maiden of Paradise herself.

"I have to rework my strategies this time," Kogasa muttered to herself with a subtle frown. "Geez, I thought I already had the shrine maiden that time. I'll need to wait for quite some time before returning there. She nearly...huh?"

Something got her attention – a dim but visible pink-colored flash partly obscured by the thick mist of the forest not far from her. It was brief, making her rub both of her eyes. She waited for some more seconds but nothing happened.

"Eh? Maybe it's just my imagination." She shrugged and shifted her attention to her checklist, pressing an index finger to her lower lip. "Where was I? Hm...It seems that the witch is always out of her house. It's hard to meet her when..."

Another flash lightened the particular area with more intensity than before, coloring the mist with pale pink hue for some seconds. She squinted her eyes for the source of the weird light which slowly faded.

"I definitely saw something this time. Maybe the youkai tonight are really active, huh?" Looking at her list once more, she mumbled, "The shopkeeper wasn't in the mood either. He's too absorbed in fiddling that rectangular thingy and his other stuff. Then-"

Then, a series of pink bursts that seemed like a monotonic lightshow brightened the vicinity which startled her a bit. She smiled to herself as her urge increased even more. "What was that all about?"

Submitting to her curiosity, she went to the direction of the pink flashes as she summoned her purple umbrella in her hand.

* * *

><p>"A-Are you hurt, Hirasawa-sama?" asked the chocolate-haired tsukumogami as she descended from her viewpoint, cautiously scanning the area as both smoke and fog lazily floated around her, significantly crippling her vision. Her whole frame was engulfed with a pink fiery glow which eventually subsided in each passing second.<p>

"Ah- I'm fine. Just a bit shocked, that's all," there came the response of the ditzy guitarist behind the spirit girl. Yui gave a encouraging thumbs up. "Anyways, that was awesome! That flashy barrage surely got them surprised!"

"Because of that, I only attracted more of them now. We must hurry or more would come."

Yui's eyes sparkled as she grabbed the hand of the girl. "I can't believe that you can actually do something like that! You can be a superhero with all that power, Gitah! "

"It's not that I don't like that idea, but I only wish to serve you. After all, I'm just your guitar."

"Don't worry, you'll do fine! The world needs you!"

"Uhm, I will...think about it."

The brunette had gotten more comfortable with her guitar's spirit as they continued finding any exit. A trusty companion that could create pink exploding projectiles was definitely a must-have when venturing to one of the youkai's territory. That alone should be a good deterrent for any would-be attackers who would think that the two were easy pickings. The spirit girl appeared not exhausted after several bouts earlier but Yui knew that they wouldn't last long for the next encounters.

Despite that, they were having a hard time navigating through the forest with the dominating darkness and mist, and the occasional youkai that would show up that would prey on them. The pair didn't anymore expect that they would accidentally meet someone, whether it would be human or youkai who would be willing to help and teach the way out instead of eating them face first. After all, human meals were hard to come by in the forest those days – a luxury rare enough for them to have.

No human in their right mind would dare to enter the forest at those hours. Even stepping just outside the village's outskirts still had its risks as a few cunning creatures wouldn't hesitate drag them out to the darkness when they get the chance. The thicket was considered a mutual hazard zone to humans, especially those without any capability to fight the local youkai on their own. Only brave and experienced bamboo harvesters were always seen walking on those parts. Of course, they only harvested bamboo during the day or that would be suicide.

Occasionally, Yui and her guitar youkai would find themselves climbing a slope or entering an area with denser fog which made things ahead indiscernible for a few feet from them. The two were moving forward, but the forest itself was making otherwise a different impression. Fortunately, Gitah's patience for her master was thick enough to motivate the girl when she was about to give up.

Truly, the monotony of the forest would easily consume the bearings of the weak-willed, specifically to humans, as if no one could get out alive in the mercy of the youkai.

On a more positive perspective, Yui had the opportunity to see a great variety of things along the way. She saw swirling, faint orbs of light dancing here and there. It looked like transparent balloon or round and compact cotton candy, but Yui learned that approaching them was a pain since the air around them was colder than the temperature of the forest itself. What more if she directly touched them? Her guitar spirit firmly opposed that idea to save their selves from more trouble.

Aside from those floating orbs, small shadows seemed to appear from a distance as if observing the progress of the pair. Then, muffled giggles could be heard if they listened carefully. It was annoying, at the same time, disturbing. Once, Yui's guitar youkai hurled an accurate bullet to the source and went on afterwards.

There were also rabbits that would pass by in a carefree manner, seemingly ignoring any possible dangers that they might come across on their way. Then again, she knew that rabbits from the mansion could freely assume animal form as if they were normal harmless rabbits. It might be the same case here, since Tewi, being the leader of all rabbits living inside the thicket, employed some of her kind to work for the manor. She opted to catch one as souvenir or as a pet when she returned back to her home, but her guitar's spirit reminded her once again of their situation.

Then came a few annoyingly persistent monsters that would battle them, craving for human flesh. Most had their humanoid form but vaguely characterized as such with their sharp fangs, large claws and other scary features which was widely conspicuous from everything else. With the guitar tsukumogami's abilities, they wouldn't lay a finger on her master anytime soon.

Well, she also had a problem of her own aside from being lost inside the bamboo forest filled with youkai that sees her as a fitting main course for the night.

Yui looked up to the sky and stared at the moon which was nearly full. Reminding her of mochi and all other food that Tewi Inaba told her for the next night's festival, her ever-conscious stomach started to revolt again. Time was running short or her stomach might decide to take over Yui's consciousness and gain control of the girl's body, much to its content.

Other possibilities were plausible too...

She might even resort to eating the surrounding bamboo, at the same time, leaving nifty trails for them to remember in case they went back to that particular area or, instead, devouring every youkai that would foolishly come in their way.

The mere thought of it was frightening...

"This is harder than I thought," The guitar spirit said as she floated beside her master whose arms already wrapped on her stomach. "This forest sure lived up to its name."

"I'm going to die here. I'm so hungry that I'm seeing mist everywhere..."

"Hirasawa-sama, you need to be strong at times like this. Also, the mist here seemed to be a natural occurrence at this time."

"_I'm really hungry_," complained Yui once more with more emphasis in every syllable. "_It's unbearable..._"

"I presume you already ate a lot before this happened."

"I did, but..." The brunette dramatically paused as she caressed her middle. There was a faint grumbling noise afterwards, flailing her arms in embarrassment. "I'm still hungry. Tewi told me to perform with you before I could even have my second course!"

"Ah, I see. My apologies."

"Plus, those scary youkai are after us. Aren't they kind enough to let us eat for awhile?"

"What do you suggest?" asked the spirit girl with a pleasant face despite of the gloom around them. "From the looks of things now, we are sure to be overwhelmed by the youkai if we can't get out quickly. I strongly oppose creating further noise in this forest before we could attract us more youkai. Leaving you here while I call for help is definitely a no either. The thick fog above us won't do any good either."

"I wanna go home! I want to eat a lot then sleep! Then eat again after that!" Yui whined in response. Her artifact spirit shook her head in response, patiently doing her best to encourage her master.

"You can't go home yet without Miss Yukari's help."

Yui cried out at the top of her lungs and arms on her side, "What did I do to deserve these things? Is this some kind of punishment! No, I think this is some kind of a hard-to-solve riddle that needs to be solved for us to reach our much awaited salvation! I demand an explanation of all this madness! I don't want to end like this!"

In the spirit girl's astonishment, she grabbed her master's shoulders and stared at her eye's nervously. "Hirasawa-sama, please don't do that again. It's for the better us both."

She couldn't blame her master though. She thought that the forest had some kind of way to get into someone's mind as if to alter thought patterns. Then again, maybe it was just Yui's hunger or the thicket's atmosphere to begin with.

The guitarist glanced sideways, breaking their eye contact. "I know...still..."

"Yes? What is it?"

Yui began to twiddle her index fingers. "I still can't believe that you're a girl. I never knew..."

"A-Ah, that?" The spirit stuttered, blushing deeply as her master revived that same topic for the fourth time since the start of their adventures inside the forest. "I-I'm sorry..."

"Also, I can't think of another name that would suit you. I hope you don't mind if I'll be calling you 'Gitah' for awhile..."

"That's no problem. You don't have to stress yourself out with something like that. Then again, I would definitely prefer the original name you've given me."

"Well, first things first," Yui started as she walked a few steps as she decided their first course of action, "we need to find food. Anything edible, like bamboo shoots. Too bad we can't get cake out of the wilderness."

Gitah blinked twice as if she just heard the ridiculous. "Don't you mean the way back to Eientei, Hirasawa-sama?"

"Huh? What do you mean? Food comes first in this situation. See, if we can't find food in the next few hours, we cannot even walk our way out of this forest."

"That's a valid point," uttered the tsukumogami, careful not to upset Yui and her wearing patience. "Still, we can't afford to look food in a dangerous place like this. The sooner we find the manor, the faster we can address your hunger."

"Then, we should find ourselves some grub to eat!"

Suddenly, the spirit girl caught movement behind them. It was very faint rustle, but it didn't make much effort for her to notice even if the mist wasn't any help at all. In a youkai-filled forest, one would always have a feeling of something stalking from the surrounding bamboo as if being hunted. "Hirasawa-san? Did you feel something weird behind us?"

The carefree girl looked behind her before giving a shrug, apparently not showing concern to her surroundings. "Nothing weird, I guess."

Frowning, Gitah couldn't help to glance back. "I definitely felt something."

"Maybe it's just your imagination? Sometimes, I get to see weird things like this fog all around the place."

"I'm seeing the fog too, Hirasawa-sama. Like I said before..."

Before she could continue, Yui leaned her face towards Gitah with an index finger pointed at her chest. "That means you're hungry too! Admit it~"

"I'm not," Gitah sternly replied as she forced a smile. "Don't worry about me."

"Well, we wouldn't know if we're not going to check, right?" asked Yui as she got the tenseness in the spirit girl's tone. "It's fine!"

With each careful step, Yui crept towards the source of the rustling but with a more carefree air than her guitar youkai who was observing in worry every subtle signs of life around them. "Be careful now..."

Half-expected by her partner, the brunette yelped as she fell to her bottom. With haste, the guitar youkai gathered magic to her whole arm in reflex which looked like it was covered in a pinkish flaming aura, ready to exterminate the assailant who was brave enough to pounce on her master. Yui burst out a giggle, making the tsukumogami stop completely with her jaw hanging, dumbfounded.

"Waah~ It's just a rabbit!" cried Yui as she ruffled the fur of the rabbit's head. "Look! I finally caught one!"

After some seconds of recovery in the shocker she didn't expect, Gitah stuttered, "D-Don't surprise me like that. It could be a youkai!"

"Come on, Gitah!" Yui brought the snow-colored rabbit up, cuddling it with her face. "Isn't he cute?"

The guitar youkai lowered her head in resignation. She could only be thankful that the rabbit was a normal one.

All of the sudden, a much more audible rustle was heard by the pair, also making the rabbit's ears twitch in the sound. This time, it came from their far left, behind a shrubbery.

"Maybe it's another rabbit!" The brunette said cheerily then she brought up the captured rabbit to her eye level, rubbing its nose with hers affectionately. "Are your friends finding you now?"

"I don't think this is the right time for rabbit hunting."

"You're right. I already know what to do next." Feeling a bit of sympathy emanating from her chest, the guitarist released the rabbit from her hands, making the white furry critter leap its way towards the bushes.

"Kyaa!" A distinct, high-pitch yelp made it clear as day that _someone_ was actually there as the rabbit jumped inside the foliage. "N-No! Huh?"

"Uh, Gitah, I didn't know that rabbits go 'kya' when talking to each other," said Yui with a baffled expression, imitating what she just heard. The guitar youkai

"H-Hirasawa-sama. Let me handle this," Gitah replied and turned to the direction of the noise with a commanding poise. "You! The one hiding in the bushes! Show yourself!"

As expected, there was no response although she could see a protuding silhouette just above the bushes. Was that really intentional? A trap conspicuous enough to be seen by its prey in the first place? There was only one way to find out...

The spirit girl sighed and said out loud, "That's no problem. I'm going to blast the area anyway." Gitah giggled a bit before raising a palm forward, creating a low humming sound. "Prepare yourself."

"W-Wait! Don't shoot!" came a nervous reply from the foliage. "I'm not even ready yet!"

"Uh...that was quick," Gitah mumbled to herself before addressing the unknown person in the bushes again. "Out you go, then!"

"Then promise me you won't shoot?"

"I won't make any promises, but it is for the better if you comply."

From the thick bushes, a girl reluctantly emerged carrying what seemed to be an umbrella. She walked a bit closer to the two as the spirit girl prepared for a decisive counterattack. Her clothing were shades of blue and white but one of her eyes stood out different, which was dyed deep red. She was also carrying the silliest umbrella that Yui saw in her entire life. The purple-colored umbrella had a creepy single eye and dangling tongue which the girl happily twirled. Her free hand was held up to her chest, indicating she didn't mean any harm to them.

"A girl with an umbrella?" asked Yui as she blinked her eyes.

"I thought I could give you two a good scare, but it looks like that you're having trouble searching for the way out here," said the girl with the umbrella, apparently fixing her messy turquoise hair, as she continued her approach to the pair. "But, I admit that you scared me good with that rabbit. I never thought of using rabbits as surprise material..."

The artifact spirit opened up a palm, a swirling pink orb instantly materialized which gave off a dim light. "Hirasawa-sama, permission to shoot the potential threat."

"W-Wait! I'm against this kind of violence!" cried the karakasa as she repeatedly shook her head. "Also, I already had enough beating for today!"

"But you youkai attack first regardless of your reason. I have the better position to doubt your intentions."

"N-No! I only surprise people, not eat them! That's disgusting!"

"I think she's not going to hurt us," replied Yui after a clear inspection of the youkai before them, the clothes of the poor karakasa was enough evidence on the damages she had incurred beforehand. "She's friendly, at least."

"You think so?" The spirit girl withdrew her hand, the pink orb was dismissed without a trace, and relaxed herself for a bit. "Very well. If you don't have any business with us, you may leave now," she warned in the friendliest tone that she could offer.

The umbrella youkai smirked in response as if she just heard a joke. "Aw, come on. I haven't given you the scare of your life yet! You've been busy fighting the youkai here, so I figured this would be a good chance."

"Huh? What's with the point of scaring us at this time?" The ditzy guitarist could only look at her spirit partner. "Gitah, is she a youkai too?"

"Yes. Apparently, a tsukumogami just like me. In her case, an umbrella youkai – a karakasa to be precise."

"Oh, so she's like you?" confirmed Yui, glancing back to the girl with the umbrella. "But she came from an umbrella instead?"

"So it seems."

"Ah, that's why the air around you is quite familiar. That explains a lot," The umbrella youkai said while nodding. "By the way, what are you doing inside the thicket? It's not your usual place to have a test of courage. It's far too dangerous with all the youkai around. It's nearly full moon, see?"

"What do you mean?" asked the guitar youkai, lost in track.

"On second thought, this is a perfect place to have a test of courage although you're going to end up being eaten here! Anyways, the youkai are more rowdy when the full moon is near. It's not safe and all, unless you're here for youkai extermination." She then gazed at Yui, examining her dress. "Are you a shrine maiden in disguise?"

"Nope," Yui replied. "Never worked at a shrine before."

"Goodie. I thought I'd get another beating or anything like that. If you're not here for exterminating wild youkai, what are you doing then?"

"It's either we can't find our way back to Eientei or we don't have an idea on how to navigate through this forest. You can freely assume what could be our case now," Gitah vaguely replied. "Unfortunately, we're not yet making any visible progress with the repetitive scenery of the forest."

"Can I tag along?" the blue-white youkai asked expectantly. "I can show you the way to the road leading to the human village. I was so bored in my meaningless, nonexistent life that I tried to memorize all of this forest for a month just for the sake of memorizing it."

Yui stared at the youkai, tilting her head in the claim. "...Nonexistent? Meaningless?"

"Well, considering you're the first youkai in this forest who didn't try to eat Hirasawa-sama, it's worth a try."

"Since we're much nearer to the human village's road, we should take this path!" Kogasa proudly announced with an index finger pointed to her right as emphasis.

Gitah looked back where they went through. "Ah, we wandered too far from the manor then," she said. "Are you sure?"

"Yep! I already confirmed it before going here. It's a pain going back with all of the fog above, especially with the nocturnal fairies and all."

"It will be better if we could return to the manor sooner but I guess this would do."

"Do you have a name?" asked Yui.

"Tatara Kogasa," replied the cheery youkai. "Nice to meet you!"

"Please lead the way then. We can chat along the way."

* * *

><p>A man in black suit was seating comfortably beside a small round table, admiring the countless gleaming stars scattered about and accompanied by the nearly full moon with its subtle glow as the most dominant figure in the sky. It was an entrancing sight while catching some cold evening air but that would only remind him of the tasks he needed to do soon. Whenever the full moon was approaching, the youkai-related incidents would increase and eventually reach its peak, adding more of his workload for those particular days. In most youkai, they relied on the moon's power, giving them a significant boost to their abilities and in turn doing reckless, vicious things that could result in several cases that the police couldn't control themselves, much less explain firsthand.<p>

It was troublesome. Along with a few of his acquaintances working under the Kotobuki family, they could just exterminate every last renegade youkai and call it a day without much to worry in the future. He thought if that was as easy as fixing his trusty handgun like it was brand new, he could now rest longer than usual and spent his days enjoying his own life after retiring from his former profession.

Truth to be told, even if he was not active in the youkai business, he would still be busy either way. Managing the Kotobuki household was one of it. Thankfully for him, the staff didn't need his presence to do their respective functions inside the house. They were all diligent and trustworthy to begin with.

He closed his eyes for a moment, contemplating to relieve himself from any stress and other negativities. Then, he spoke up out of the blue without moving anything as if he was greeting an unseen visitor, "You're here again. You really like this place, huh?"

There was a petite girl wearing a faded lavender dress on the left side of the terrace, sitting at the end of the elaborate balustrade encompassing the place with her back rested comfortably on the wall. She had a shoulder-length hair which was cutely curled at its tip and with a pair of seemingly transparent wings on her back which noted her nature significantly. The fairy answered with a small nod, her eyes looking at the night sky in great admiration.

"Why don't you go play with your friends? It seems they're enjoying this night, especially under this moonlight."

The fairy motioned her head sideward with her attention still on the stars scattered above them.

_Heh. This fairy's so hard to convince in any way. I don't really want her to leave though._

_Fairies are quite a rare find nowadays... Still, didn't she knew that we exterminate youkai?_

"Stubborn as ever, huh? I guess it can't be helped."

A much younger silver-haired man, apparently about to exit his teenage years if were to describe him physically, appeared as if he was already there. He was wearing the same suit like the older man – the only evident difference was the color of their tie and shoes. He bowed down in respect as if he was intentionally summoned there.

"Do you have anything to report as of now?" The man asked expectantly as he sensed the presence of his subordinate.

The newcomer nodded. "Sir, about Mistress Tsumugi..."

"How is she doing? I presume you're keeping an eye on her whenever she goes somewhere else. With the youkai going rampant these days, I cannot guarantee her absolute safety. Her father's instructions are very clear to us..."

"In fact, I have news that I can't seem to put if its really a good or a bad one. I can only assure you that Tsumugi is unscathed in any way."

The brown-haired man raised an intrigued eyebrow. "Enlighten me then. I could tell that this might be interesting. Haven't heard much of Tsumugi's actions lately."

"First of all, Mistress Tsumugi met a very sophisticated youkai named Yakumo Yukari. Apparently, the youkai claims that she could control boundaries and resides in a place that she refers as 'Gensokyo'. I don't know much of the specifics in how such ability works as it is out of my field. I could tell that the youkai have taken a liking to our mistress for some reason as she would visit again sometime in the future."

The man repeated the familiar name inside his head as he broke a sweat, hearing just the ability of the youkai sent chills down his spine. He somewhat expected that one day, Tsumugi would meet someone out of the common variety of youkai but not exactly _that_ particular youkai. "Continue."

"Yesterday, I suddenly lost track of her as Mistress Tsumugi, along with some of her friends, went to a somewhat different dimension with said youkai. She makes this gap in space where they use as their transport. They weren't gone for too long though, only for about less than two hours. I'm not entirely sure but they visited their injured friend somewhere. Maybe it's the place where the youkai lives."

"So, if that youkai could really manipulate boundaries, it's not impossible, is that right?" asked the brown-haired man, still having doubts. "This proved to be intriguing, don't you think?"

"Also, there was a small skirmish during the afternoon, involving two local youkai. It was nothing to be concerned of though since Mistress Tsumugi fortunately didn't participate in."

"Two other youkai? Are they somewhat connected to _her_?"

"It seems like it. They address each other as if they knew each other for a long time now."

"Hm, we will leave that aside for now." The brown-haired man gazed back at the star-filled sky. "Are you certain that the youkai was Yakumo Yukari?"

"Yes, the blonde-haired youkai who always carries this fancy parasol in one of her hands. Are you familiar with that youkai? Is she something of importance I'm not aware of?"

"Yakumo Yukari, the youkai of boundaries, out of her domain? Now, making friends with our dear Tsumugi?" The man closed his eyes for a moment as the unintentional silence continued to grow every second, at the same time, increasing the tension in the air. The younger man gulped as he fixed his necktie just to make him relax more.

Another person entered the neatly-decorated terrace. This time, a blonde girl in the mansion's prescribed maid uniform, carrying a tea set fit for royalty on the steel tray. She also had a striking resemblance to her young mistress that would probably confuse them for twins when placed next to each other. The maid stopped midway as she sensed the tenseness in the air. Thinking that she just stepped in a whole different world, she tried to open her mouth to say something but failed to pronounce any word.

Finally, after what seemed to be a whole minute of silence, the man took noticed, slightly turning his head to acknowledge the girl. "Oh, it's just you."

"A-Am I interrupting something?" The blonde girl asked worriedly as her hands began to tremble on its own, along with the tea set on the tray. "I-I could just..."

"It's nothing important. In fact, your timing was perfect. I could use for some tea of yours now. Can't end the day without drinking your tea." He smiled a friendly grin. "Good alternative for wine and brandy if you ask me."

The maid calmed down as she displayed a small smile of her own. "That's too much credit, sir."

She went to the elegant round table where the brown-haired man was seated. She carefully placed a tea cup near him and filled it with steaming fragrant tea. In turn, she also placed the tea pot on the table's center in case the man needed a refill.

"Ah, yes. Thank you for the trouble," said the man as he took his tea cup from the table. "You can rest now if you like. It seems that you're done with your duties anyway."

"Thank you." The blonde maid elegantly bowed with the tray against her chest. She stepped backwards before turning her back.

Suddenly, the man spoke up which made the girl stop midway, surprising her for a bit. "Are you feeling well?"

The young maid turned and softly said, "It's just that...I'm quite worried about Lady Tsumugi. She tends to spend more time outside these days where youkai are more active than before. I mean, something bad might happen to her..."

The man gazed at the face of the concerned maid and gave a reassuring smile. "You may be right but she's not empty-handed as you might think."

"W-What do you mean?"

"Even though I'm sending this young man here to watch over Tsumugi, I don't have doubts in her fine judgment and capabilities in any way. I can ensure you that she will be fine on her own. You should trust her more of all things."

The maid was quite relieved as she managed a smile, sweeping away all of her worry.

"I trained her well! Why doubt about it?" The man heartily chuckled as he brought the tea cup to his lips and took a sip while allowing the relaxing aroma to enter his nostrils. The young maid's face was now riddled with confusion, imagining what kind of training the man gave to her mistress. "The tea's good, as expected from you."

"T-Thank you, sir. I will retire now."

"You are a great help for Tsumugi. Rest well."

After the maid left, he promptly looked at the direction where the fairy was enjoying her solitary stargazing. As expected, she promptly left some minutes ago. He managed a faint smile before looking back to his subordinate. Maybe he could use to invite the fairy into an idle chat while having tea one evening.

"What was it you want to ask? Gensokyo?"

The silver-haired man stood in attention as his master spoke. "Yes. I've been wondering about that place. If I recalled it right, the mistress is also interested in it. The one that she calls 'fantasy land of youkai' or somewhere along those line."

"To keep it simple, Gensokyo was once a youkai-filled region of Japan that suddenly disappeared without any trace. Despite that, it used to be a great place or so it seemed to be."

"D-Disappeared? How could such thing possible?"

"Hold it right there. I know what you're thinking," the man said as he held up a palm, suppressing an already visible smile in the reaction of the other. "I mean, physically, the place is there as of today, but everything in it was gone like nothing happened there in the first place, save for an abandoned shrine that was rumored to be sitting in the middle of the barrier itself."

"A shrine in the middle of a barrier?"

"You heard me right. They called it the 'Hakurei Shrine'. For the record, they still haven't found a single descendant of the Hakurei anywhere which was a disappointment in their intelligence unit. It's either that all of them died before they could continue their lineage, but that's very unlikely."

"Sounds like an unusual folk tale to me."

"Trust me. What I said is even more than that. Wanna place a bet? Who do you think has the ability to make it possible?"

"No idea, sir," replied the other man bluntly.

"Ha! I thought you already know much of Yakumo Yukari! She's the youkai of boundaries after all! It was said that she sealed the place with her ability and never to be found again as it should be. Sounds like a fairy tale, no?"

Doubting on what he just heard, the younger man shrugged. "I'm sorry, but I find that hard to believe."

"I'm not convincing you to believe this nor I wanted to spread the word about this whole thing either. It's not like that alone could change the present." He paused, organizing his thoughts. "If you must know, Gensokyo is once inhabited by youkai beyond your imagination. A single one could easily burn down a village with almost no effort. Life at those times was full of hardships where the humans would spend their days in fear, locking themselves inside their houses as the youkai ravaged the lands. Some said that it was the time where _hell was raised to the surface of the earth_. It doesn't sound like much of an overstatement if you were there too."

"Yes. The destructive nature of the youkai in the past was almost uncontrollable. Up until now, we still deal with a few, particularly the hard-headed ones."

"Of course, the humans couldn't possibly allow the youkai to continue all of that. As a form of retaliation, they enlisted powerful humans that would exterminate those youkai, either of them volunteers or freelancers who do that kind of work for a living. Yes, anyone that would be willing to defeat the youkai regardless of reasons. The battle between the two forces continued on until the place was sealed which made things even more confusing. The humans already got the upper hand at that point too as their power increased along with time."

"If that was the case, why did the place disappeared all of the sudden?"

"The true reason for the sealing of the place is still unknown as of now. What we know is that the gap youkai played a vital role in this little project of theirs since it would require her ability for it to happen and the Hakurei shrine is said to be the barrier's foundation. Well, I might be wrong but that's what I know."

"So, in that sense, they made themselves independent from our world?"

The brown-haired man slightly nodded, rubbing his chin. "That seemed to be the case but knowing the nature of youkai, there might be something off with those accounts. We can never know without seeing the _true_ Gensokyo first. You might learn a bit from following the youkai of boundaries herself."

"Sir, sorry to interrupt but who is this Yakumo Yukari anyway? You looked like you know her a lot."

"I don't know her personally, but I already read much info about that woman. To make things short, she's a very dangerous youkai. Fighting her won't do anything good. She'll just fiddle you like a keyboard until you surrender without even giving you a chance for a good comeback. Seeing her serious is a whole lot different story, especially when her border manipulation ability comes into play."

The silver-haired man shuddered as if the evening breeze's temperature dropped a few numbers. Was that youkai really that powerful? Although he couldn't disagree that the ability of border manipulation opens up a plethora or possibly limitless possibilities. Opening gaps in thin air as if tearing reality itself was one of it. Maybe it was a good thing he wasn't yet compromised with all of his sneaking around his mistress.

Then again, he knew her mistress well. He swore that Tsumugi already knew him as if he was a mere shadow.

"From what I have seen, she's a very refined youkai with this intimidating aura around her. She seemed like a deity at a glance, from her looks and in her actions."

"I heard she's quite a beauty too. Can you confirm that to me?"

"U-Uh, do you fancy her, sir?"

The brown-haired man chuckled, taking another sip from his teacup. "Well, you saw her already. You're the best person to ask with that simple question."

"Ah...sir, aside from that," the younger man gulped down in distress as he tried to process all what he just heard, "are you sure these information are not classified? Also, if Gensokyo is protected by said barrier, then there's this possibility that it could be penetrated and eventually reach the place anytime."

"Ah, finally got curious? The _others_ might know something else. They are more active in searching for the 'lost land of youkai', if you know what I mean. Funny, eh? If you wanted to know more, ask them yourself."

"I suppose it would be best to not indulge myself further on it. If they're already living conveniently in a different place from us, that shouldn't be a problem now. Humans should be thankful for that."

"Needless to say, they are too eager to discover a way to Gensokyo. They're definitely hiding something new from us, but no matter. So far, they've only recovered a few accounts and records about the youkai region. I have yet to collaborate with them regarding about it."

"I think the mistress is glad to meet someone like that youkai. She even experienced being inside Gensokyo without much effort."

"One more thing..."

"What is it, sir?"

"If anyone from them asked you about the appearance of Yakumo Yukari around these parts lately, just feign you don't know anything. We would need to confirm it ourselves first without breaking Tsumugi's interaction with her and to know more info. Of course, that would only provoke the youkai of boundaries if anyone of us would make a move against her. We must take account of Tsumugi's safety, which will always be our utmost priority."

"Understood, sir."

"Other than that, continue monitoring her and the youkai. You're dismissed."

* * *

><p>"I can't walk anymore...go without me," Yui weakly muttered under her breath, collapsing to the ground as if she had run around the whole forest incessantly. Well, it wouldn't be an exaggeration that they already did prior to Kogasa's arrival.<p>

Gitah bent over in front of her master and said, "Hirasawa-sama, we're already here..."

The guitarist reluctantly scanned her surroundings as they were now in a clearing where the road extended from both sides. She looked over her shoulder for good measure to see that they were already out of the bamboo forest. "At last! I thought we're going to be stuck in that forest forever!" The guitarist squealed as she stood up in excitement and newfound energy, glad that she finally saw something other than bamboo and that distracting mist.

"Wow, my guess is right! I thought I was wrong all along," said the karakasa as she anxiously laughed.

Gitah stared at Kogasa with suspicion, knitting her eyebrows together. "That was a guess? Are you sure you really know what you're doing?"

"Wait, It's not what you think! I didn't mean it like that! Of course, I know!"

"What's important now is that we got out of the forest, right?" asked Yui, easing the building tension between the two youkai.

"Y-Yes, by all means," the guitar youkai replied.

"Thank you, Hirasawa-san!"

"It took us quite some time, but thank you for your help," said Gitah, bowing down as she remained floating a few inches above ground.

"Well, now that we're here. May I ask where you are two going next?" asked the curious karakasa.

"Like you said, we should head to the village. It's not safe when we camp in the wilderness."

Kogasa happily twirled her purple umbrella. "I'll join too! I got nothing to do for the night anyway."

"You're too eager to join us. Are you sure that you're not here to eat my master?"

"No! Trust me! Also, our kind doesn't eat humans! You know that!"

With a quick glance to the youkai's purple umbrella, Gitah mumbled, "Your umbrella seems to tell the opposite..."

"Err...Gitah, it's okay. She's pretty cute for a youkai, so it she doesn't count like the rest of them!"

Kogasa's face turned scarlet as she stared at the ground, awkwardness slowly piling up. "Ah...you think so?"

"Your umbrella is cute too! Never seen like one of that before..."

"Y-You liked my umbrella?" asked Kogasa, almost spacing out. "An eggplant-colored umbrella? You're delirious..."

"Who cares about the color? You're still cute! Both you and the umbrella!" said the brunette as she gave the karakasa a hug. "Oh, eggplants are good too!"

However, Tatara Kogasa knew nothing on Hirasawa Yui's definition of something being cute. Perhaps everything in the scope her interest was cute and ready to be cuddled anytime. Gitah closed her eyes as she remembered a rather similar scene in the music store where she first saw a ditzy brunette fussing over a guitar she claimed 'too cute' compared to the rest of the displayed instruments, disregarding quality, price and other factors to suit her.

It was thanks to Kotobuki Tsumugi who eventually sealed their fate with her small intervention, noting that her family coincidentally owned said music store and being the one who insisted Yui to get the guitar despite of its price tag.

Snapping back from her trance, Kogasa reminded them in a fashion similar when telling a scary tale, "The road to the village is quite tricky since some youkai lurks in the shadow, waiting for any passersby. We should be a bit careful~"

"I guess we won't be in the safety zone just yet."

"Kogasa-chan? Are you okay? You're spacing out just awhile ago…"

"A-Ah..." The question seemed to register in Kogasa's mind after a few seconds. "Y-Yes! Of course!"

"Shall we start walking then?" Gitah said.

"W-Wait! Wait!" cried Yui as she stretched out her arms to her sides, retaining her position. "I smell something."

"Huh? What is it?"

"Something good. Something…" The brunette closed her eyes, sniffing the air as if she was a dog searching for food. "Grilled!"

"What? Something grilled?"

"Do you smell anything?" asked Gitah expectantly to the umbrella youkai. "I doubt my own senses."

Kogasa shook her head. "Nope. What is it anyway?"

"Let us find the source!" The brunette enthusiastically pumped a fist to the air, making the other two exchange looks. "At last! Food!"

"A food that's grilled, huh? I don't want to doubt her about this..."

"Come on, you two! LET'S FIND IT!"

"She's so fired up! I hope it's something interesting!"

"We're getting sidetracked again. I hope we won't get attacked again or anything like it," muttered Gitah anxiously.

"Don't worry, Gitah, I can tell it's just straight ahead. We're not going in the woods."

Yui hopped her way to find the source of the grilled food she noticed using her seemingly extraordinary perception for food while the other two youkai could only follow her trail. It didn't take long for them though as the human village could already be seen from their position in the distance. What caught their eyes was a pseudo-stand adorned with red lanterns located halfway from the village itself. A few people could also be seen eating in makeshift tables and chairs just beside the stand to accommodate a few more of its customers.

"So, this is the place?" asked Yui as she watched a trail of smoke drifting away from inside the stand. "Maybe a yakitori stand?"

On the other hand, the guitar youkai was slightly impressed for her master's extreme food senses. "Hirasawa-sama, you're right. I shouldn't have doubted you in this matter."

Kogasa opened her mouth as she finally recognized the stand. "Ah, that's the sparrow's grilled lamprey stand. She moved her cart here this time around too."

"Lamprey stand? So it's not a yakitori stand?"

The umbrella youkai nodded. "Popular to humans who wishes to improve their eyesight. Well, most of her customers keep coming back not for that reason alone. Her menu's all good too."

Gitah thought of what she heard for a moment. "Wait. I'm sure you mentioned a sparrow."

"Yep, a sparrow operates that stand - A night sparrow to be exact."

As they further approached the stand, the aforementioned night sparrow turned out to be a girl wearing a simple white apron for cooking purposes with feathery wings that spans on her back which a feature that would easily identify her as a bird youkai. She noticed the presence of the new group, eyeing them carefully before resting her eyes back to the karakasa. She sighed annoyingly before tending the recently-placed lamprey on the grill. Her expression after recognizing Kogasa seemed to change almost instantly. The other two men silently drinking sake shifted to both opposite sides to accommodate them. "Oh, you're here again. Don't make me throw live charcoal at you~"

Kogasa gulped once, doing her best not to break a sweat. Staring at the blazing grill as the smoke slowly filled the crowded cart didn't help her a bit. "No. I'm here as a customer, see?" She ran behind the pair and nudged them forward. "I brought in some friends of mine here too."

"Are you sure? That was your excuse the last time around~"

"Yes! I'm a real customer this time! Don't worry about me," said Kogasa before facing Yui and Gitah. "Hey, I'm sure you're hungry with all that walking." Before the two could react, she added, "My treat! So eat all you want!"

Yui jumped in glee to hug the umbrella youkai. "Yay! Thanks, Kogasa-chan!"

"I'm grateful for the offer, but you don't have to go this far."

With a thumbs up and a silly smile, the karakasa said, "Don't sweat it! I'm hungry too."

"That's not what I meant..."

The guitarist broke from the embrace as she pleaded, "Come on, Gitah! You must be hungry too!"

"Uhm, I'm not."

"No need to be modest. It's my treat after all!" She then glanced at the menu hanging beside a decorative lanturn. "Mushroom kebab, my favorite!"

"Ooh! I want that too!" Yui said, going for the kebab as well.

"Okay. Three of the usual order, then two of the good stuff."

"Sorry, but we aren't serving anything called 'good stuff' in here," replied the night sparrow bluntly. "You might try the next stand for that."

"Eh, I mean the kebab! That's the good stuff!"

She paused as she mentally reviewed the orders. "Three orders of yakitori and two orders of shiitake special. Anything else?"

"I think that's it! Oh, extra sake for my order too!"

"Ah, whatever. Take a sit over there," The sparrow girl said in an almost singing voice, pointing to an empty table through the window. "As long as you won't do something stupid, I'll serve you grilled lamprey. Just let me finish this batch first..." She gave one hesitant look to Kogasa before returning her eyes to the grill. "Just to be sure, Rumia, keep an eye on her, okay?"

The owner of the name didn't respond as two of the intoxicated customers exchanged looks. "Hey, Rumia?" She sighed as she stepped out of her stand with a lamp in one hand, proceeding towards what seemed to be a blob of pure darkness beside the farthest table. If it weren't for the night sparrow, Yui and the others wouldn't probably notice its existence. It also made them wonder why the light from the lamp couldn't even penetrate the ball of darkness. "Rumia, help me out here."

Unexpectedly, a girl's head poke out of the mass of black which made the sparrow girl jump back defensively with a muffled yelp, almost dropping her lamp she was holding. "Sorry about that! What's up?"

"I'm sure you already heard it, but I'll say it again. Keep an eye on that umbrella girl while I do my job, okay?"

"B-But you don't pay me!" The petite blonde-haired girl whined as if she was going to do the most boring, non-productive task in her life.

The sparrow's feathery wings twitched as she thought of a response. "I give you free food everytime!"

Amazingly enough, Rumia easily conceded with a reluctant shrug. "Okay. Okay, I get it. You don't have to be so pushy!"

"We can hear you!" reminded Kogasa playfully, waving a hand to the two. The lamprey stand owner just returned the gesture with a glare before returning to her post.

"It looks like the sparrow youkai doesn't trust you at all," Gitah noticed.

"Well, I can't blame her. She nearly burned her own cart _that_ time but it was an accident!" The guitar youkai continued her doubtful stare to the karakasa as she firmly added, "Really! Believe me!"

Gitah said particularly nothing as she watched the girl named Rumia jumped out of the sphere of darkness which instantly dissipated like a cloud of smoke afterwards. Well, she had to imagine what trick Kogasa pulled out for making the lamprey vendor grill her own cart instead. She recalled earlier about the lamprey vendor throwing charcoal to Kogasa, which could be the case. Maybe something entirely different happened instead? Regardless, the night sparrow would serve anyone as long as they were customers regardless of their kind, which was quite surprising for being a youkai herself.

After the small argument between the two, the sparrow girl went to her business of grilling while the other approached the group as they seated on their assigned table with her lively grin.

The girl, by appearance, was surprisingly young for someone like her to be working that late in a location outside the village, including that she was 'working' with the a bird youkai. She had short blonde hair decorated with a rather unique hairclip. If it weren't for the dim lighting from the lanturns or moonlight, they might not clearly notice the girl's deep red eyes. She sat on the last unoccupied chair as she greeted, "Good Evening! Can I take your order?"

"She already has them," Kogasa said as she pointed at the stand with her thumb.

Rumia's face remained neutral for a moment before she flashed another cute smile. "Just wanted to say that."

"Miss Lorelei hired you?" asked the karakasa, as she placed her still-open umbrella on the grass beside her. "It looks like her business is growing now..."

"Nope, just hanging out with her as usual but she asks me some errands from time to time. It gets annoying sometimes, like fetching some charcoal for her."

"Is she a human?" the blonde girl suddenly asked as her eyes were now fixed onto the only human with them.

"Uh, yes, if you put it that way."

She bit her lower lip as she inquired, "It's weird to see a human together with youkai. Do you need her for something?"

"We're just on our way to the human village. Since it's not that far ahead, we decided to stop by here."

"If you two don't need her anymore," the girl stopped mid-sentence as she slowly licked her lips, "Can I have her instead?"

"What?" uttered Gitah, processing what she just heard from an innocent-looking girl like it was unbelievable. "Sorry, but I cannot allow that."

"Ohh...she's a youkai too?" asked Yui.

"She may not look one, but she is," Kogasa confirmed.

Yui, from seeing all of the more ferocious man-eating youkai earlier, didn't appear to be much surprised, except for the fact that the youkai was in the form of a cute, innocent girl. "You two know each other?"

"Kinda. I just often see her around," the umbrella youkai replied. "Well, her darkness bubble, that is. She travels around with it all the time."

"Is that so? Too bad." Rumia beamed in response. "I want to have something new for a change other than grilled lamprey."

Yui slumped over as her stomach reminded her of its priority once again. "Yeah, I already miss Mugi-chan's yummy parfait."

"Hirasawa-sama, eating desserts on an empty stomach is not advisable," Gitah reminded. "Your sister tells you that every time."

"What's a parfait?" asked the now-curious darkness youkai as her eyes sparkled as the guitarist mentioned something edible and _yummy._

Yui perked up as she started to imagine having some. "It's delicious! If only she was here, she'll give you one! Oh, her fruitcakes too! All fresh and satisfyingly good!"

Now, Rumia was more than interested and couldn't help to ask, "Are those more delicious than humans?"

The guitarist paused for a moment as she went considerably pale for comparing the dessert to human flesh. "O-Of course! A cute youkai like you shouldn't be eating...humans."

"Maybe Mystia should add that to her menu," said Rumia, almost dreaming what those desserts could possibly look, smell and taste like. "Hey, tell me more about that kind of food."

The two tsukumogami could only stare to one another as they waited for the sparrow girl to finish the order, leaving the other two food enthusiasts to discuss matters concerning delectable desserts and such.

* * *

><p>"This is not good," Reisen muttered as she stared at a few bodies of youkai rabbits that littered the ground, knocked out of alcohol. She had a bit fun earlier but not enough to compensate everything she had done. After all, that chance of releasing her stress was rather short-lived as she searched the whole mansion for Hirasawa Yui who vanished out of the blue for some reason. She thought that everything would turn out fine, but the winds suddenly shifted against her. It was an exhausting day. She wanted to rest her fatigued body. She wanted to lay down on her futon and sleep, but only to realize that she couldn't. She had duties, as Yagokoro Eirin's apprentice and Houraisan Kaguya's pet and servant.<p>

A handful of rabbits that were still 'functional' started cleaning the place after an hour of rest, stacking up plates, bowls and cups, and bringing them back to the kitchen where it will be washed. In the end, she was still the one who would do most of the chores, especially if Eirin ordered so.

If the rabbits didn't start a food fight in the first place, it wouldn't be too hard...

Tomorrow was certainly going to be busier. She just wished that things wouldn't get more hectic. Infusing a bit of determination into her mind, she fought the urge of sleeping as she stood up from the floor stretched her arms up, getting ready to continue her search. At that same time, Tewi walked towards the moon rabbit in a clumsy manner with her mind still clouded with alcohol, eyes already half closed. "Hey, what's with that face? Something wrong?"

"You forgot already? That serves you right for drinking too much."

"How should I know?" Suddenly, Tewi's alcohol-induced drowsiness somewhat decreased. You still didn't find her?"

"I've looked everywhere. She's not in the mansion."

"Damn. After a few hours of enjoyment, we have to work already?" whined the rabbit girl of good fortune and pranks. "Not cool."

Reisen's face looked like she was about to cry. "Master's going to kill me for this."

"Well, she'll definitely cook me alive. I'm supposed to watch her too," Tewi pointed out as she gently slapped her cheeks with both hands."Or maybe not."

"Yakumo-san won't be happy too. You know what I mean, right?"

Tewi nodded in accord as she stomped her foot in emphasis. "Yep. Definitely screwed, Rei-chan. It's your fault all along!" A grin slowly formed on her child-like features. "Your fault~"

"What? You just said that it's your responsibility too!"

"Is there a problem?" asked Eirin as she opened the door just behind the gloomy moon rabbit.

"M-Master? Since when..."

The pharmacist took her time of surveying the area before her. "It seems that the rabbits enjoyed the party. I guess this would be enough for you to work harder for tomorrow."

"Also, I haven't seen Hirasawa-san since the last hour. Where is she?" inquired the lunarian as the two rabbits looked at each other for a few seconds.

Reisen glanced upwards as she deeply sighed. There was no point in hiding already discernible things. "She's missing. I think she went to the woods during the party..."

"Indeed, this is quite problematic. Yukari won't be happy if she heard this," Eirin said as if she instinctively repeated the same words of the moon rabbit earlier. She pondered for a moment, glancing at their surroundings, apparently needed more cleaning before they could finally call it a day. "I also saw that black witch earlier. Are you sure she didn't took Hirasawa-san by any chance?"

"That's probable if you think about it," said Tewi, not thinking much of the situation at hand. "Yeah, that could be it."

Clearly not accepting the possibility given by the youkai rabbit, Reisen interjected, "I doubt about it. Marisa won't steal her from us."

"I see," muttered Eirin. "So, she disappeared just like that?"

The moon rabbit decided to try once more. She knew that even though Hirasawa Yui was only their patient that only needs healing from her accident and completely unrelated to any of Eientei, they should show concern, even a sliver of it, to the girl who was probably struggling for survival in the bamboo thicket. "Master...you seem to take it lightly. She's in our responsibility, right?"

"Yes, in a way," Eirin began as she conformed Reisen's point, "but we already did what was instructed. She's healed and can pretty much do anything she wishes now."

Somehow, she was expecting that kind of argument. "So, you're saying that from the point that Hirasawa-san was healed, our liability to her is gone too?"

"Well, that was we agreed on. Know this Udonge: I'm not expecting this to happen either. Also, I don't want to make my efforts go to waste in this way. That is to say, Hirasawa-san being eaten by the wild youkai."

"Oh, I almost forgot," uttered Reisen as she remembered something that added up to her speculations. "Her instrument in the room was gone as well. Don't you think...she really left on purpose?"

"She can. But I think you filled her in a few details about the bamboo forest. Not all youkai are friendly and accommodating. With this nearly full moon, it won't be awful to say that it will be a miracle if she's still alive, which I hope to be the case as we speak here."

Hearing the response of her master, Reisen cursed herself as she should be doing that now. "Whatever the reason is, we need to find her."

"You should, Udonge. I can't imagine what kind of punishment from Yukari is waiting for you," said Eirin in a straight face, perfectly concealing the playfulness contained in those words.

The moon rabbit shuddered. Now she had to pray for any gods willing to listen to her, hoping that the gap youkai wouldn't come to the mansion until she finds Yui. Her master's punishments were cruel but she didn't have to know which one would be the worse. She couldn't even assure herself if she would see another day afterwards.

"Should we start searching now?"

"I will leave that to you. Be careful with the youkai around and come back here before midnight, regardless of your search's result. The preparations for tomorrow will continue on schedule."

Reisen grimaced at the thought of not being able to bring back Yui before the given curfew. Well, the bamboo forest was also their home, given that Eientei was standing smack-dab in the middle of it. Navigating through the thicket turned out to be a simple chore to her now, especially when Tewi would play hide-and-seek at the worse moment.

"Understood." She then turned to Tewi who was now admiring a line of ants carrying bits of food. "Tewi, let's go."

"Ah, right~"

The moon rabbit looked at her companion annoyingly. "You're still drunk. Just help the others in cleaning. Wait, maybe you only want to avoid doing the chores!"

"Eh? What do you mean? I could use some of my rabbit buddies to help us with the search! After all, these forest is crawling with them~"

"Good point. Do anything stupid and I'll tell master about it the moment we return, got that?"

"Yeah, cranky rabbit girl."

The lunarian watched the two rabbits vanished to the mist shadowing the deeper darkness of the forest. Knowing them, they could hold their own without much trouble as the two weren't any ordinary, random youkai. She called one of the rabbits that recently woke up, who in turn gulped on the mess she and her friends made awhile back. "Please wake the rest of your companions now. All must be in order before Udonge and Tewi returns, unless you want your workload to stack up until Reigetsusai."

The rabbit with a carrot-shaped hairclip on her short wavy black hair nodded and said, "A-Ah, understood, Miss Yagokoro!" She stood up and immediately went to fetch something from the kitchen. A full minute had passed before the same rabbit came out carrying a bucket full of water. She opted to watch the rabbits for awhile before returning to her room.

"This is amusing."

Eirin didn't bother to move anything as the gap youkai was standing by the doorway. She just watched the clever rabbit girl splashing water to the faces of her still-unconscious friends, not needing anymore further effort to wake them up. The sleeping rabbits grumbled as they got up from the ground. "I figured that you already knew this, Yakumo Yukari. Yet, it fascinates me why news like this reaches your home quickly."

"Well, I'm not expecting that she would wander in the forest," said Yukari bluntly as she made a stern frown. "Minus credibility points for you, Yagokoro Eirin."

The lunarian chuckled before looking at the gap youkai's golden eyes as if analyzing them. "If you don't act quick enough, the chances of her getting eaten by the youkai will only come closer."

Yukari wasn't fazed as she did nothing but to open another gap in front of her. "That's why I brought her guitar to her before, remember? She will do fine."

"Then you'll just allow her to wander around until she finds the exit on her own?" Eirin raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Also, what could possibly an instrument do in her situation?"

"Your questions aside, I'll pick her up tomorrow and like I said, she would do on her own. It's not like she's alone to begin with." Yukari glanced back for the last time, giving the lunarian a smile. "Payment is at your office. It's not much, but I'm sure you'll like it."

"How thoughtful. I'll trust your words about it then. Maybe Udonge and Tewi could find her instead."

"Rest assured, she will manage."

The boundary youkai vanished upon entering her own gap as if swallowing her. Eirin noticed that the rabbits earlier were awake and now dumbly staring at her, intrigued on Yukari's sudden appearance. She clapped twice, quickly earning their attention before asking, "How about we start cleaning now?"

* * *

><p>Yui learned a few things about her guitar friend while eating the night sparrow's specialty under the moonlight. She seemed to be a floating ghost at a glance, but she could actually take in food like any normal human although Gitah corrected that she didn't need to eat in the first place. Kogasa was quite different however, as she happily ate her serving as if she never had food for days. Aside from that small detail, Yui didn't need to carry her heavy guitar anymore as long as the instrument's 'spirit' was summoned out of the physical object itself.<p>

It only meant that both entities couldn't possibly be present at the same time. The guitarist was confused herself in that specific condition she only realized just that time, but her missing guitar was enough evidence since the 'spirit form' of the guitar appeared out of the blue. In any case, she was not rushing to cram all of that info in one night alone.

Her new friend, Rumia, apparently an average youkai girl that could make artificial darkness around her, was an unexpectedly good company at the dinner table despite of her diet mainly composed of humans. She would occasionally talk about weird things and had an unending curiosity about anything edible. Perhaps she was acquiring new tastes to enjoy with other than her usual food. Her companion, the night sparrow girl running the stand was a very interesting bird too. From the looks of things now, sparrows and rabbits in Gensokyo could cook great dishes like humans. To top it off, much to the guitarist's admiration as she was a vocalist herself, the bird youkai could also sing pretty well, although most of the lyrics didn't make any sense at all. Still, it was enough to keep customers entertained while enjoying grilled lamprey with warm sake. Unknown to Yui, songs from night sparrows had other purposes.

The darkness youkai wanted to join the group but was literally grabbed by the neck as the sparrow girl insisted to stay with her until the last customer left. After the good meal which took for half an hour, the trio walked their way to the village and eventually reached the place without encountering more trouble.

The night life of the village was far from being dull either as decent variety of shops and stands could be seen along the main pathway where both human and youkai could be seen enjoying the lively scene as lanterns of different shapes and colors complemented the mood with a brighter tone. Yui looked around excitingly as if she was in an amusement park, effectively removing her fatigue while the two youkai followed.

"It looks like a very carefree place to me. Good to see that the youkai here are in good terms with the humans," Gitah remarked as she floated beside the karakasa.

"It is, right?"

"Why don't they attack the humans here in the first place? That would be the same case for the humans allowing the youkai to enter the village as they please."

"Well, for one thing, this village is protected by both powerful humans and youkai. The folks at the Myouren temple near the village or the half-beast historian living here, for example. You don't want to anger them for messing up this place."

"Hm, it makes sense that the residents aren't much afraid of the youkai."

"Yes. It's always peaceful here. I can assure you that."

Gitah remarked, "You sure know awfully lot about this world. I mean, about Gensokyo."

Yui chipped in, "Yeah, like a tour guide or something."

Kogasa embarrassedly blushed as promptly replied, "I don't know more much detail about Gensokyo other than the places near the village and where I work to."

"Don't forget the bamboo forest," Gitah immediately added. "It's not something like a youkai would do. You should be proud of it."

The compliments only made her blush more. "Oh, that. It's not much, really!"

"This place reminds me of summer festivals," said the brunette before her face went pale, anxiousness building up once again as she remembered something fairly important.

Her tsukumogami took notice and asked with an expression of concern, "Hirasawa-sama, is something wrong?"

"W-Wah! We need to get back to Eientei! T-The festival! I don't wanna miss it!" cried the guitarist frantically as if the world was on the verge of collapse.

The guitar youkai sighed in such minor detail. "You're still thinking about it? The festival is tomorrow evening. We still have time."

Yui dumbly stared at her with an open mouth for some good seconds. "Oh."

"Uh, so, what are your plans now?" Kogasa asked as she carefully selected her words. "I still have time left before I work again tomorrow."

"I guess we should find some place to stay for now." The spirit girl stared at her master hesitantly. "Hirasawa-sama, do you, by any chance, have a few coins with you now?"

Yui's hands automatically went inside her blazer's pocket, only to find nothing but air. "Ah, well...about that..."

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."

The guitarist wasn't worried as she looked above. "It's not all bad when sleeping outside, right? The moonlight feels nice."

"No worries," The blue-white karakasa began as she twirled her umbrella for a dramatic effect. "I'll cover your expenses for the night! My new place still need some cleaning after all~"

"That's remotely suspicious," started Gitah, casting a doubtful look at the umbrella youkai. "You already helped us in the forest and treated us with grilled lamprey. I don't want to be rude for all of that, but I want to know your goal in treating us kindly."

Kogasa leaned closer to the kimono-wearing spirit and gave her a playful wink. "Please have more faith in me! Besides, I'm currently in my day-off. It's my chance to get a break and to scare people since tomorrow's business's going to be busier."

"Ah, so do you work here too, Kogasa-chan?" inquired the brunette.

"No, I work at a small eatery in the Road of Liminality, mostly yakisoba, udon and some other yummy snacks."

"Road of Liminality?"

"You don't know? It's a very lively place which always have this festive feeling, despite the fact that it's the road used by deceased spirits to get to the Sanzu river."

"Really? I want to go there!"

"Hirasawa-sama, did you already forgot about going back to the outside world?" reminded Gitah, only to be ignored after her master ran to the row of stalls that offers food, souvenirs and games. She conceded with a pout. "We don't have any other choices, do we?"

"Great! Nice spending the night with you two! Even youkai like me could get lonely too, you know?"

"W-Wait," she uttered sheepishly. "A-Are you sure about this?

"Very sure."

"Kogasa-chan~ they're serving yakitori here! Hurry!" shouted Yui as she was already next to the yakitori stand, waving her hand vigorously with hopes of a treat. "It looks delicious!"

The two went towards the stand while Yui continued to watch the owner prepare his special yakitori. "You two are pretty close, huh?" Kogasa suddenly said as she stopped walking. Gitah did the same. "I can tell that you two are best buddies. I'm sure everyone could."

"Do you think so? I only had this form a few hours back."

"You're saying that you're born in this very same day?" asked Kogasa, mildly astonished. "I never knew!"

"She was attacked by youkai by that time and I couldn't just watch all of it happen before me. It's still vague to me on what miracle happened in those moments."

"I-It must have felt nice, huh?" She casted her gaze downwards. "To be honest, I'm quite jealous."

"Why is that?"

"I-It's a good thing that there's someone with you when that moment happened. You have someone that treats you pretty well, an owner that cares for you so much. You know, there are only a few people who would really cherish their things as if they were irreplaceable."

"Yes. I'm grateful for all she has done to me. I'm quite envious that you could pick up details like that quickly."

"I do that sometimes when picking out someone to surprise. It turned out to be an entertaining game to me. I learn a few things from them too."

"Out of curiosity, how is your life back then as an ordinary umbrella?"

There was a reluctant pause for Kogasa's part as she carefully selected her words. She finally said, "Uhm, it's nothing special, really. My original owner got me misplaced for some reason. Then that's that. After awhile I ended up here in Gensokyo, now as me."

"And you're okay with that?" Suddenly, Gitah felt guilty for asking the umbrella youkai's history.

"Maybe I got used to it by now. Heh, I don't know. I just feel that thinking about it won't get me anywhere."

"Kogasa-chan, let's eat!" cried the guitarist once more.

"Coming!" Kogasa called out. "I want some of that too!"

"She just ate awhile ago, but Hirasawa-sama is just being herself."

"That's why you're lucky to have someone like her, don't you think? Oh, its better you forget all about that," said Kogasa, forcing a bitter smile. "Come on, she's waiting."

"Tatara-san, I-"

"What's with that look? It's no big deal! She'll get mad if you'll just float there!"

"I-If you say so..."

* * *

><p>The whole night ended well for them, aside from staying up too long than planned. For a modest and comfortable room such as the one they were staying now was worth the price, at least on Kogasa's tab. The room was intended for only two persons, but actually quite spacious with its usual oriental feel that resembles Eientei. Everything was dead silent, save for the snoring umbrella youkai who drank a whole bottle of sake before she finally passed out.<p>

_It would be bad if I'll wake her up now but it's already quite late..._

The chocolate-haired tsukumogami, without anything to do other than wait for the two to wake up on their own, floated by the window as she watched the local townsfolk do their morning jobs. The most prominent sight would be a caravan passing by with a group of humans armed with pitchforks, spears and other weapons alongside the carriages. She assumed that the men would venture quite far from the village to acquire needed resources from there, not to mention the youkai that might attack them any given time upon leaving the village.

What she had learned from Kogasa boggled her mind as their small talk accidentally broke something inside of the umbrella youkai. She could tell that the youkai was coping with the past as she indulged herself in some pastime such as surprising people. Anyways, the karakasa seemed to be enjoying herself, at least most of the time in the 'hobby' of hers.

She turned around to see the guitarist raising her upper body before giving off a loud yawn. She smiled to herself at the thought of seeing her master wake up in her new form. It was like a dream come true for some that was originally an inanimate object. To be frank, that thought didn't cross her mind at all.

"M-Morning already?" Yui said groggily as she held her head. She slowly examined the room until she met the eyes of her guitar spirit who stared back with a welcoming smile. "Gitah, you're already up?"

"Yes. Good Morning, Hirasawa-sama. How was your sleep?"

"I feel great!" Yui replied before setting her eyes on the bed beside her where the karakasa was still sleeping soundly. "Oh, Kogasa-chan's not yet up?"

"Probably the sake knocked her good last night. Maybe we should wake her up now?" asked Gitah.

"Well, let her be for some minutes."

"Hm...hmmph," Kogasa grumbled in a muffled voice as she impulsively placed a pillow on her face. "Can that wait? I...need some sleep."

"We're not waking you up, Kogasa-chan."

As if on cue, Gitah remembered something she had to tell to the half-asleep youkai. "I'm certain that you mentioned about working today..."

Hearing what the guitar tsukumogami said, Kogasa sprang out of her bed, eyes wide open and now flailing her arms. It seemed to be an effective alarm clock for her. "A-Ah! I'm late! I knew drinking too much is a bad idea!"

"C-Calm down, Kogasa-chan!"

"Okay, relax…" The karakasa sat down as she took a deep breath before asking, "Well, you guys need to get back to the rabbit mansion later, right? Can you just wait for me until my shift is over?"

"It would be better if the residents of the mansion are informed of our condition first. They probably searched for our whereabouts last night. Also, if we are lucky enough, Reisen-san might drop by in this village later."

"That's easy then!" declared Kogasa as she caught an idea of her own. "I'll be dropping by the mansion on my way back and tell them you two are here in the village. Even though I'm used to go around the bamboo forest, I still take time in reaching a particular destination in my mind."

"Thank you, Tatara-san."

"Yeah, thanks for everything too!" followed Yui. "So, what do we need to do for the rest of the day?"

"Uh, sightseeing?" The umbrella youkai suggested. "If you exited on the other side of the village, you'll see the Myouren Temple, then the Misty Lake and even further that will be the Forest of Magic. The lake is quite a sight but don't wander too far though!"

"You won't eat breakfast first?"

"No need! I'll just eat when I get there."

All of the sudden, their benefactor was now rushing to get to work. Gitah inwardly panicked as they hadn't thought of something yet to somehow repay the umbrella youkai's expenses, starting with the grilled lamprey until their overnight stay. "B-But what about-"

Kogasa beamed, waving a hand as she said, "Don't worry about your breakfast. I already paid it in advance last night." The karakasa looked over her shoulder before giving an assuring wink. "Uhm, I better get going. See you again another time!"

Well, she had to worry about those miscellaneous fees too. Just how much money was the umbrella youkai carrying anyway?

"A-Ah, it's not what I meant!" Kogasa already took off through the window before she could say anything further. She lowered her shoulders with a disappointed sigh.

"Thanks, Kogasa-chan!" Yui waved her hand, watching Kogasa fly out of the village. "W-Wait, she could fly?"

Smiling, Gitah felt that she would meet the umbrella youkai some time again later. She might think first of ways to repay Kogasa before that. "She's a somewhat busy youkai, don't you think?"

"Gitah, let's have some sight-seeing to kill time. She mentioned a lake nearby this village, right?"

"Uhm, Hirasawa-sama, I don't mind going for that idea but I'm sure Yagokoro-san and the others are worried for your safety. It's not particularly safe exploring outside the village, regardless of the time."

The guitarist stopped walking as she considered the words of the guitar spirit for a moment. "You're right," she said, nodding. "But, you're here with me and your powers! No need to worry!"

Gitah thought that she could use some of the lightheartedness her master possesses. "Well, I guess so…"

After having their breakfast, they gave their thanks to the middle-aged innkeeper and went their way to see more of the human village, now bustling as people did their respective chores but that had to wait since the same man by the counter called them for some reason. "Hey, the girl with her...uh, floating friend, spare me some few seconds, will ya?"

"Uh? Do you need something, Mr. Innkeeper?"

"Can you do a small errand for me?"

"Sure," Yui responded then she looked at Gitah. "We don't mind, right?"

"Yes, as long as it won't take much of our time."

"Good then. Can you return these to the flower shop for me?" requested the innkeeper, bringing out a couple of tools under the counter. "I got tons of things to fix here before nightfall. A lot of youkai would come here later."

"Those are quite heavy for us to carry..."

"Well, you're a youkai, so you'll do fine, I guess."

"That reasoning of yours is not that convincing."

The innkeeper chuckled. "Well, as thanks, have these." He took out a small box, apparently containing pastries. "My daughter likes baking, so have her homemade treats. It's not much for compensation but accept it anyways."

Yui brightened as she gladly took the box from the man. "Okay, we'll do it! Right, Gitah?"

The guitar youkai sighed to herself, knowing that she couldn't stop her master now. "We'll accept it."

Gitah took the most of the heavy steel tools - a garden rake, a spade and a hoe, leaving her master to carry a small tool box for gardening purposes. Even though Gitah was far from a human, her physical strength was not anything exceptional compared to other youkai. "Aw, Gitah, I want to carry the rake!"

"Uhm, you might drop it on your foot instead, Hirasawa-sama. You shouldn't carry things like these carelessly," replied the guitar youkai while she hefted the tools, expending much of her energy in that process alone. Yui only puffed her cheeks in defeat.

"That's all of the tools. Say thanks to the owner for me," said the man as he lifted a crate to the other side of the room.

The door swung open before the two could open it themselves. Yui was literally thrown to her bottom while Gitah regretted not saving her master on time as she was shocked herself. A woman with wavy green hair flashed an elegant smile which earned Yui a cold chill on her body the moment she glanced on those brilliant red eyes matching the stranger's dress. She looked very refined as she casually held her pinkish parasol. Yui felt that the woman was no ordinary villager.

"O-Oh my. Pardon me. I'm not aware that you're standing behind the door."

The smile of the woman didn't cease in the apology which made Gitah quite infuriated, but she opted to politely reply, "We are just about to leave ourselves. Please be careful next time."

The guitar youkai's words seemed to work as the woman's smile loosened for a bit. "Worry not; I will take note of that."

The pain somehow registered just now as Yui winced, putting a hand over her throbbing nose. "I think I broke my nose."

"H-Hirasawa-sama, are you alright?" Just as Gitah could help her master stand on her feet, the green-haired woman casually extended her free hand in front of the brunette. She didn't seem to mind closing her parasol, even indoors. "Here." She smiled again as Yui took the motion, although slightly hesitant.

"T-Thanks. Well, I'm sorry too for that."

"Ah, it's my fault, so you don't need to apologize."

"To be honest, I'm not expectin' you to be here at all! What can I do for you?" The innkeeper asked as he finished arranging the stack of crates, addressing the newly-arrived woman who was a familiar face to him.

"I'm here to fetch the tools for the owner. You've been keeping them for awhile, yes?"

"Convenient." He then looked back to the pair with a hearty grin. "S'ppose I won't be troubling you two anymore, eh?"

"H-How about this?" Yui asked as she brought up the box given to them.

"Ah, you can keep it yourselves. Who knows? Maybe you'll like it then come back for more."

"You shouldn't make these girls do errands for yourself," the woman remarked with her ever-present smile in response. "That's not good for one's reputation."

What she got was a grin from the man. "I did nothin' wrong. Honestly speakin', I'm glad they didn't refuse. I could use all the help here."

In a matter of seconds, the fancy parasol of the green-haired lady completely vanished in a burst of yellow and pink petals that slowly vanished in the air as they swayed to and fro. Now that she freed her hand from the parasol, she first took the toolbox toppled on the floor.

"Please allow me." She offered her other hand to Gitah who blinked confusingly before giving the tools. Without needing assistance, she used the hoe as a hook for the toolbox's handle, allowing herself to carry the other two garden equipments with her other arm effortlessly. For an elegant woman such as her, it was astonishing to see that she was carrying them just like the way she carried her parasol earlier. "Thank you."

Kotobuki Tsumugi could also do something similar when they had to move something heavy from one place to another, particularly heavy speakers, Tainaka Ritsu's own drum set, and even single-handedly moving the club room's cupboard as well. Not to mention that the blonde could carry her own keyboard with such ease as if it was a shoulder bag. Yui silently speculated where these kind of people got that kind of upper body strength. She could use a bit of those too.

"These are all of them, if I'm not mistaken. Thank you." The woman then calmly asked the guitar tsukumogami observing her, "Can you open the door for me?"

Gitah obliged, pulling the door's handle for the lady. She called her master afterwards. "Hirasawa-sama, let's go as well."

"Thanks again," Yui said to the owner as she waved the box before following the woman outside.

After the guitar youkai closed the door behind her, she noticed that the woman was just standing there, waiting. "Do you need something from us?"

"Oh, nothing in particular," the woman responded with another smile. "If you have the time, please visit the flower shop situated along this path. Good day to you both." She turned her back and began to walk her way to the aforementioned shop, humming an unfamiliar tune to herself.

"That woman is strange," Gitah said as she crossed her arms.

"But she was kind to help us with the errand."

"Didn't you sense anything else from her? The air around her is..." The guitar youkai paused as she searched of a proper word in her mind but instead smiled nervously.

"Gitah, I want to check the lake first!" Yui suddenly declared as she raised a fist to the air, not entirely minding the concern of her partner.

"We're still going for that plan, huh?"

"Why not?"

They continued walking on the main pathway, occasionally meeting humans on their way to the lake. Upon reaching the village's outskirts, they met a fork up ahead, the right path leading to a nearby temple where both youkai and humans could worship together. Yui suggested visiting the temple before they head back to the village. The dirt road was then split yet again, but this time to the left which would lead them to the Misty Lake. The main road seemed to extend up to the north which they pondered while walking where would the path end.

One thing that would be in common with the bamboo forest and the lake was the mist that was slowly gathering in an eerie manner, making it more questionable. From the other side of the large lake was an imposing structure painted in red which was partially secluded by the light fog. It was odd to see fog on the lake when it was only closing twelve noon, where the sky appeared to be clear from clouds. Nevertheless, the fine mist still allowed sunlight to reach the water's surface.

The subtle charm and eccentricity of the lake before them was somewhat fascinating.

"Wow! I have never seen something a lake this big before! It has that annoying 'misty effect' too!"

"It wouldn't be called by its namesake if that's the case."

"Hey, is that a castle?" asked Yui as she squinted her eyes for a clearer view to the structure.

"Well, it looks like one since it's partially surrounded by water," said the guitar youkai. "But I don't think it's a castle, Hirasawa-sama."

"I know! Let's walk around the lake for a closer look!"

"Tatara-san told us not to venture too far! What if a powerful youkai lives there?"

"We're not! We're just going to see if it's really a castle!"

As they proceeded to check the red structure, they noticed a picnic mat splayed under a tree nearest to the lake's edge. On the mat were a few bowls and plates, two small baskets and chunks of different kinds of food scattered around as if thrown around on purpose. For a nice, clear weather such as now, it was a wonderful time for an outdoor meal.

"A picnic here in the open? I don't think ordinary humans would even consider such thing, unless they could defend themselves."

"But it looks like they already left whoever they are."

Yui managed to salvage a single sandwich inside a small container. "Ooh, lucky!"

"Is…it even safe to eat?"

Before Gitah could even protest, her master already took a large bite off the sandwich. "Yep! It's safe _and _delicious! Let's see if we can find something for you, Gitah!"

"H-Hirasawa-sama, I don't think this is a good idea eating other's food."

Four fairies, each carrying a basket of their own, arrived at the scene after they floated their way from the other side of the lake. Each had the stature and appearance of a child, likely to be a tad taller or smaller than Yui's waist. They would be easily mistaken as humans in appearance if it weren't for the wings on their back.

"Fairies? So this is what they looked like at close," muttered Gitah as she inspected the humanoid creatures of nature.

"Wow, they're so cute!" squealed Yui as if she was going to give them a tight hug. A common habit of hers usually demonstrated with her junior friend, Nakano Azusa.

"Hm, so it's true that fairies are common in Gensokyo. How come we only met them just now?"

The fairies took notice of the pair's presence. Their faces portrayed somewhere between shock and disbelief, apparently not expecting anyone standing near the picnic mat. "Hey! This is our secret picnic spot; find one of your own somewhere else!" The brown-haired fairy pointed a finger angrily as she tried to be more threatening and impressive than her looks, but failed nonetheless. "Get out of here!"

"This is a secret picnic spot?" Yui repeated as she glanced to her partner who in turn gave her a shrug. Gitah expected the fairies to be at least friendlier than the youkai in the bamboo thicket.

"Our food! It's gone!" the fairy with cherry-colored hair squeaked as she released the basket she was holding in shock, seeing the food they left earlier literally vanished.

"No! I was looking forward to that!"

"I can't believe this! All of my work preparing that mushroom salad!"

Altogether, they started to speak incoherently as if a great disaster fell upon them. Yui and Gitah looked to the mess beside them then back to each other in confusion. The commotion stopped as they shot fiery glares of hell to the pair far from their innocent, childish appearance a few seconds back.

"Oh, it looks like mushrooms are popular here. I never had a mushroom salad before." Yui wondered loudly. "What do you think, Gitah?"

Gitah glanced at her master. "I think we're in trouble," she said slowly as she prepared herself for the worst. "We should get out of here."

"Hey! You two aren't going anywhere!"

The brown-haired fairy floated forward as she pointed accusingly. "Where's our food?" she demanded.

Yui took a step forward as well. "We didn't take them! We just arrived here a minute ago!"

"Really? The bread crumbs on your face is a very clear evidence!" the blonde-haired fairy pointed out before crossing her arms. "How will you explain that?"

A bead of sweat rolled down Yui's cheek. "W-Well..."

"Uh, Hirasawa-sama?"

"I...I only did the right thing! The sandwich is all lonely!" Yui retorted decisively as if her reasoning was the most superior that moment. "You can't just leave something that good in the open!"

"B-But you still ate the sandwich in the end. That's what matters to them..."

"Aha! Guilty!"

"You'll pay for that!" The fairy with the purple hair exclaimed as she brought her two arms forward, releasing a wave of round projectiles no larger than full-grown oranges. Yui could only cover her mouth and she found herself unable to move.

The guitar tsukumogami was quick to react as she pulled her master out of the line of fire and found herself thanking the gods that the projectiles were quite slow and relatively linear. "W-Wait, this is a big misunderstanding! We didn't-"

"Let's fry 'em, girls!"

Not waiting for any more explanation from the accused pair, the rest of the fairies started their own barrage of multi-colored projectiles, forming a cone of bright lights outward to the pair. As a desperate act, Gitah directed her magic around her and Yui, enclosing them in a pink transparent barrier that strongly shook in the impact of the bullets.

There were gaps and holes they could use to weave through the danmaku, but the guitar youkai doubted if they could dodge those patterned projectiles without getting smacked by one. She couldn't possibly take such risk, especially concerning her master's safety.

It was like playing dodge ball in a whole different level. Consequences of getting hit were far greater too.

"What should we do?" asked a Yui in panic. "Gitah, we can't hurt innocent fairies! They're not like those other youkai!" She yelped and closed her eyes as she saw a red-colored orb about to collide with her face, only to be blocked by the pink barrier.

The guitar youkai wanted to go for an offensive, but that would be risky as well. Her master insisting to resolve the food problem without harming anyone made the situation more awkward. "B-But they're attacking us! We can't just let them do what they want!"

"I wish they just poof away or anything! We didn't do anything wrong!"

The fairies burst to a unified giggle as they created more and more bullets as if they were just playing a game. "You won't get away until you two replace what you ate here!"

"I'm hungry! Can't we finish this now?"

"Then hush and keep shooting!"

"After we're done beating you up, you're going to pay us double of the food you just ate!"

"Hey, don't contradict what I said!"

The guitar youkai flinched as she started to feel the pressure poured onto them. While the youkai of the bamboo forest mostly relied on brute force and close-range attacks to mow down their prey, the fairies of the lake were somehow expected, given their magical nature. However, given their deceiving features of being like they were powerless, fairies were not to be underestimated.

"G-Gitah, are you okay?"

"I could manage but the barrier will get overpowered soon if they keep this up!"

"A-Are they going to kill us for just eating their sandwich? I don't remember them in stories to be violent!"

"I don't have an idea for that as well! But I do have an idea to get you into safety." She breathed in deeply before she continued, "I'll create a temporary distraction for you to run as far as you can. We'll do it once I found a gap through their attacks and use those few seconds of opportunity."

"How about you? I can't leave you here!"

"Trust me, Hirasawa-sama. I'll catch up afterwards."

"G-Gitah!"

Yui's wish seemed to come true before the pair could execute their plan as a single surge of dense danmaku from above completely silenced the fairies. Yui and Gitah looked above to be greeted by a familiar nine-tailed fox youkai.

"I can't believe you two got out of the bamboo forest safely, only to have trouble in these fairies," she said as she hid her hands inside her sleeves like always.

Gitah dismissed the worn-out barrier for a clearer look to the youkai. She called out, "Miss Ran? H-How did you found us?"

"Yukari-sama didn't give me details where to find you other than her assumption that you two should be out of the forest already. Fortunately, the search was rather short for me."

The fairies seemed to be more resilient than Ran assumed as they were still conscious, apart from their overall appearance lightly charred and blackened by the attack.

"H-Hey, what's with you?"

"Don't interrupt us like that! If you want to join them too, so be it!"

Shifting their attention to the floating fox youkai, they immediately began to open fire at her with a more complex barrage than the first. For a high-caliber youkai like Ran, she only did little effort in dodging the fairies' bullets without bothering to counter their attacks.

A stray yellow bullet found its way towards the shikigami's right arm, making a clean hit. Ran placed a hand on the rather sore spot then she patted it gently. The blonde fairy who scored the hit smiled blithely as if it was considered an achievement in her whole life while her friends cheered in the feat. Ran, however, didn't show any form of resentment after she received the fairy's bullet. In fact, she smiled in amusement as if she hadn't experience anything like it for a long time. "What a persistent bunch."

With a flick of her hand, a horde of orb and kunai-shaped danmaku formed around the shikigami. The sheer amount of the colored projectiles was intimidating enough for most of her opponent to surrender or beg for forgiveness.

Sadly, the fairies couldn't back out now in their grim situation.

The moment she opened her eyes, the projectiles rained themselves down to the four targets below. The fairies were awestruck, eyes widening at the display of their impending death. Gitah summoned her barrier once again, in case some of the bullets would accidentally hit them. The targets were completely overwhelmed as their cries were replaced by the sound of the rapid impact of danmaku harshly pelting the ground.

The smoke finally subsided as the fox youkai slowly descended near the pair, admiring her handiwork that she felt regretting some time later on. "I...I think I overdid it. Oh well, work is done either way."

"T-Thank you for your help," said Gitah in a shaky voice. "But that last attack was a…bit unnecessary."

"You must be the tsukumogami Yukari-sama told me about," Ran replied as she nodded slightly. "It's a pleasure meeting you."

Yui looked at her guitar youkai then to the gap youkai's shikigami. "Yakumo-san knows Gitah? Since when?"

"I haven't asked her further in that matter, but I digress. That detail is of minor importance."

"Where are they?" asked Yui as she looked at her surroundings. "The fairies earlier?"

Gitah surveyed the area as well, but there were no signs of fairies near them. Yui somewhat got the same message as she started to tremble on her own. Again, the guitar youkai gazed blankly at the shikigami. "D-Don't tell me that..."

"You killed them, you cruel fairy-murdering fox-lady!" exclaimed Yui as she dropped to her knees almost hysterically, weeping on the little fairies that tried to fry them with seemingly harmless bullets.

The nine-tailed fox youkai felt a little guilty but the girl was missing the important point. The fairies were not 'dead' and never would. Even using her most powerful spellcard would only be a grand waste of energy to them.

"I'm wondering about that as well," Gitah said. "You attacked those fairies without holding back."

"About them? As entities of nature, they will recover almost instantly after taking lethal damage," Ran explained as she kept a serious expression. "Besides, those fairies owe an apology to my shikigami."

Yui raised her head as she wiped her tears with the sleeve of her blue coat. "B-But aren't you a shikigami too?"

"Hirasawa-sama, she meant that she has her own shikigami as well aside from serving as Miss Yukari's shikigami."

"Ah, you mean Chen? Sorry, almost forgot about her."

The shikigami's smile was genuine as she said, "I'm truly glad you remembered her name, even if you haven't met her personally."

"But, what about the fairies?" The guitar youkai asked as she glanced back at the spot where the fairies were assaulted by danmaku, evident smoke rising above the scorched ground.

"Right about now," declared Ran as if she was counting the fairies' restoration time in her mind each second. "See for yourselves."

The aforementioned fairies began to appear one by one from their previous position as if nothing happened at all – hair and dress without a mark from the blasts beforehand. They seemed to be fine although pain and displeasure was evident on their childlike features as if they had a wild tantrum before materializing again. The four exchanged bewildered looks as if they forgot what they did earlier.

With the only food they had brought left for them to eat that particularly fine afternoon, they each grabbed their respective baskets they brought earlier fleeing as fast as their wings could carry them to the opposite direction, bickering along the way who should return back later to retrieve their remaining picnic utensils which miraculously survived Ran's assault.

Yui's eyes widened in amazement. "Wow, you're right!"

"This is quite something," Gitah remarked. "In that sense, fairies are somehow invincible?"

Ran watched the fairies disappear into the slowly-forming mist of the lake. "It's true that they cannot die in ordinary circumstances but that doesn't make them powerful," she explained. "Knowing their sneaky and playful nature, they do not attack anyone unless cornered or agitated. What did you do to provoke them to the point they go spraying danmaku all over the place?"

"A-Ah, they have mistaken us eating their afternoon picnic. They're really mad at that but I only ate the one and only sandwich left there! Aside from it, we didn't find anything else more than that!" Yui defended herself as if she did eat the picnic food instead.

"Maybe someone else already ate the food beforehand," stated the guitar youkai. She speculated that whoever did the act of downing almost all of the food on the picnic area in record time was amazingly swift but predictably messy eater. Still, she didn't know how long was the time frame where the fairies went back to their house to fetch their remaining food that allowed anyone to finish everything in one sitting or just how many food was left on the picnic area before any of that happen.

Gitah had come to a conclusion that solving that tiny mystery wouldn't merit her anything other than putting the blame on the person who was indirectly liable to any injuries that could transpire in the fairies' outburst a minute back.

"Also, who would leave their things unattended in the open just like that too?" Yui added to her previous stand earlier.

"Uh, Hirasawa-sama, you tend to do that sometimes too," Gitah reminded sheepishly.

Hearing the pair's story, Ran simply blinked her eyes as she got nothing to say about the matter. "Sounds like a reason for them to attack."

"Quite a rash decision for them to make. Something tells me they do that quite often."

"It can't be helped. Fairies often take actions without considering much of the consequences. Although I admit that those fairies are quite more than the average. Despite being simple creatures as they are, working together allowed them to create a wider range of attacks which makes them more of a nuisance."

"Maybe the term 'excessively carefree mindset' fits them well."

"Small talk aside, please give me a moment."

The shikigami brought out her cell phone, pressing a few buttons on its keypad and placing it near her ears. She turned her back and waited for ten seconds before the receiver finally picked it up then a small yawn greeted her.

"Sorry for disturbing you Yukari-sama, but I found her. Yes and she's not hurt or anything," the fox youkai replied as the two waited for the conversation to finish. "I will take it from here." She finally terminated the call before returning the phone to its place.

Yui's eyes shone brightly. "Wow, you're using a cell phone too? That's nice! Can I have your number, just in case?"

"It's not that necessary, Hirasawa-san. Let's just say this phone functions quite differently from the typical one you use."

Yui looked a bit disappointed. "Bummer," she whispered. "I wish we could stay in touch." She returned her eyes to the painted-red stone building which was now closer than before and pointed excitingly. "Ran-chan, is that a castle over there? What's inside it?"

Ran followed the gesture with her eyes. "Ah? The Scarlet Devil Mansion? The mistress of that mansion is a vampire."

"A…v-vampire? They exist too?"

Gitah wasn't sure what to say next as she preferred to stay silent instead. Suddenly, a gap in the space between them opened which was the same one that Yukari used. Ran shifted a bit sidewards. "My master will take you back home as promised."

Yui looked around for any signs of the gap youkai but she was nowhere to be found. "Where is she? What is she doing now?"

"I presume she returned to sleeping after the call. Anyways, it's nothing important."

"Wait. How about Yagokoro-san and the others? H-How about the festival?"

"After this, I'll personally visit Eientei to inform them of your return to the outside world. I am certain that they will understand, since this was the intended plan from the beginning. You have not much to worry about. Regarding the festival, as the matter of fact, is held monthly on the night of the full moon. I suggest attending the event in your free time."

"A karakasa named Tatara Kogasa will do the same favor after her shift in her work. I'm not entirely sure when - maybe before nightfall."

"I will inform Yagokoro-san about her arrival to their mansion then."

"You're supposed to be a fox, right?" Yui suddenly asked, earning a raised eyebrow from the kitsune. It came out of nowhere anyway.

Hearing the simple question, Ran nodded. "Why do you ask?"

The guitarist stared at the two-tailed hat of the youkai. "I was just wondering what's under your hat. Rei-chan has two set of ears, one being her rabbit ears. Same in Tewi-chan's case."

"Yes, these are my fox ears," Ran replied, slightly tilting her head. "Any more questions?"

"Okay... W-Where does this portal-thingie leads to?"

"To your home, specfically your room. Kotobuki-san already gave my master the precise location, so things would be in order." Ran gestured to the gap in an inviting manner. "Now that everything's settled, I'm sure everyone back there is waiting for you, Hirasawa-san."

"Last question!" declared the brunette as she raised her hands before looking at Ran squarely to the eye. "Are you already tired of my questions?"

"I also act as Yukari-sama's voice when she's not available to speak with. It's only natural to be used to it, I think."

"Good to hear! Thanks!"

"Well, that sums it up," commented the guitar youkai as she gave a final look to the scenery behind them. Yui followed as she reached for Gitah's shoulder, smiling.

"What's with that look? It's not like this is going to be our last here."

The guitar youkai nodded. "You're right. Let's go home."

"Ohh...I wonder what Ui cooked for lunch today. I missed her cooking..."

"I suppose your sister is in school at this time."

"I have an idea!" Yui then addressed the fox youkai, "Can you change the location of this portal to the school?"

The fox youkai frowned to the request. "Only Yukari-sama has the ability to configure her gaps," she said. "Though I'm her shikigami, I don't have such ability."

"I was thinking that we'll surprise my friends in the club room instead!"

With her warm smile that only a youkai like her could show, Ran gave a hint to the guitarist. "In any case, they were not expecting your return today. That alone is enough to surprise them if that is your current intention."

"You're right! Thanks, Ran-chan!"

* * *

><p>After school was always the golden period for the light music club. Drinking tea while contemplating the things they have done for the day was a good relaxation for them. Surprisingly for today, they decided to practice for half an hour to break the boredom. They also had to adjust since Yui wasn't around yet, so Azusa took the role of lead guitar. Suddenly, the door slowly opened and a young man with ruffled black haired and cap in one of his hands, stepped inside together with their club adviser, Yamanaka Sawako who was smiling at the display of enthusiasm shown by the club.<p>

"This is something new. What made you girls practice today?" she asked as she placed her hands on her waist, somewhat impressed. "Got tired of tea time?"

"Good afternoon, sensei," The keyboardist greeted as she bowed accordingly like always. "Welcome back."

The others followed to greet their adviser as well before Sawako waved her hand in response. "Oh, it's not like we're not seeing each other every day."

Ritsu, after recognizing that her homeroom teacher brought along a rather suspicious man, allowed herself to smirk impishly. "Hey Sawa-chan, I admire your reckless bravery and all but you can't just bring your boyfriend here like that!"

"Can you repeat that, Tainaka-san?" asked Sawako as her lips formed a sinister smile but retaining her serious vibe. "To be clear with you all, he's not my boyfriend and will never be. He was just discharged yesterday after his innocence had been proven and I thought bringing him here would shed some light to you girls." She looked at the girl with the yellow headband once more.

"I-It's nice that you clear things up quickly, Sawa-chan."

"I hope you don't mind if we asked what you have been doing these days?" asked the pigtailed guitarist as she stole a glance to the man beside the teacher. "You're not stopping by in the club room anymore."

"Well, there are a few things that came out lately," Sawako explained apologetically. "I guess this is the perfect time to cope up with you." She then fixed her eyes on Mio who cringed impulsively. "I'm sure Mio-chan here missed me the most, isn't that right?"

"Uh, I think we're losing the main point here," Azusa asserted.

Mio asked. "Sawako-sensei, who is he?"

"Are we getting to the point already? Fair enough," said Sawako before she gestured to the man on her left. "To simply put, he's the van driver involved in the accident."

The drummer's body twitched and a glare that could effortlessly pierce metal was immediately set to the man before them. She couldn't believe that the person who messed up the life of her friend would visit them!

"You jerk...!" Ritsu grabbed the man by the collar and pinned him on the wall by considerable rage. "You really have the guts to show yourself here, huh?"

The man didn't respond, averting his gaze from the furious drummer, not resisting to her now tightening grip. "Do you have any idea what you've done? Too bad you picked the wrong girl to mess with!"

Ritsu stopped as a hand was pressed on her shoulder. She turned her head to see her adviser slowly shaking her head. "Let us not jump to conclusions yet."

"What? You just said that..." Ritsu prodded the man on the chest before she continued, "_he was involved!_"

"As you can see, his intentions are clean. After learning that I'm Yui-chan's adviser, this man convinced me to check her condition, despite the consequences of it. The investigators seemed to allow this and I went along. I don't see the reason for turning it down."

"What are you talking about? What investigation?" asked the drummer as she lowered her voice. She might be in good terms with the teacher, but respect was a thing to be always remembered.

"R-Ritsu, I'm confused as much as you are, maybe you should calm yourself first," Mio suggested with a irritated look but also showed bits of worry. "You shouting won't get us anywhere."

"How about we sit together first before we continue? It's nice if we could relax along the way."

The girls immediately left their instruments as Mio and Azusa propped their guitars on the wall before they went to the table. As Sawako finally sat down last beside the man, she added, "I also learned something interesting during the investigation."

"You finally found out the fact that it was his fault all along?"

Sawako narrowed her eyes. She knew that she would have a hard time explaining. "First, I'll ask a few questions first if you don't mind. I want you to be honest, okay?"

Mio tensed up as she sensed a different around her teacher. "W-We will try."

"No trying, you will be honest. It's not hard to answer them at all."

"We got it. Just tell us already," said Ritsu, patience already wearing thin.

"Do you believe in ghosts? Ever seen one at least once?"

"Uh, okay that was just stupid, Sawa-chan. Did you join into some kind of occult group or something?"

Azusa shrugged. The question was already typical where she could hear it being asked almost everywhere yet, at the same time, a senseless one for bringing it up in the first place. "I haven't seen one yet."

"I...I don't want to see one. I won't ask for seeing...those things...I don't," Mio muttered incoherently as unpleasant thoughts started to spread on her mind like wildfire.

"Mio-senpai? Are you okay?"

"Okay, another question to make things easier. I don't usually deal with them too," Sawako glanced at the room's humble ceiling before she asked, "Do you believe in supernatural beings - youkai and the like? I just want to hear your thoughts on it."

The bassist's face went pale as her body began to shiver on its own. "Sawako-sensei, w-why are you bringing that up all of the sudden?"

The pigtailed guitarist sighed, rolling her eyes in such nonsensical question. "You're scaring us, intentionally!"

"Actually, we just met a few yesterday," replied the drummer. "Err...I wasn't supposed to say that?"

"Well, not a surprise about that. The accident is actually a manifestation of a paranormal entity. Whether it could be a work of a mischievous spirit or youkai, we are yet to solve this matter. I think the investigation team already has a few suspects in mind."

Collective gasps could be heard from the girls from their adviser's revelation as if it was the last thing they might hear.

"Sensei, you don't mean that the accident was caused by a youkai in the first place?"

"It would be natural for anyone to assume he's responsible for this incident, but was, in fact, the contrary."

The club's keyboardist who remained silent throughout the discussion directed her gaze downwards as if shutting herself down from the rest of them...

_She's Amiya Hiromi, a youkai that could manipulate almost anything machine-related. Fortunately, not a very bright one and tends to break things instead._

Tsumugi's face slowly darkened in the thought of their first encounter. Hiromi was the last thing she needed to remember at those moments, noting that the keyboardist was doing her best to forgive the youkai's selfish actions. Most of the youkai wouldn't care about humans to achieve what they wanted. After all, the youkai disrupted the lives of humans for centuries which were their reason of existence.

It was a trait that would be a common thing for them to have. She just wished they could control their urges to just wreck things. In the end, she heeded the advice of the mistress of boundaries as it was the best thing to do. In fact, it really was. She wasn't like some of the people she knew as if the youkai was something to be eradicated on the face of the planet. She was not like them. Not a chance. Her interest in youkai would never deteriorate.

_Tsumugi wouldn't blame all of the existing youkai just for the liability of a single one._

Finally, it was the van driver's turn to speak. "Saying sorry won't change what already happened, still," He took a deep breath, composing himself before he continued. "I'm sorry. It's not like I didn't do anything that moment. Everything happened so quickly."

"You don't even need to apologize," said the keyboardist in a rather exhausted voice. "You did nothing wrong."

Ritsu and the others went speechless as they stared at Tsumugi who found it somehow easy to say those words. The homeroom teacher grinned to the man beside her. "You're absolved now, to them at least. It's all good, huh?"

He nodded in accord as he released his apprehension with a deep sigh. "It's good that she survived and I'm grateful for that. I can't believe that there's a doctor who could patch her up that quickly."

"Who on earth could imagine she will be good as new for a few days? I want to shake her hand for that feat," Sawako commended. She needed to know what kind of miracle was pulled off to make her student's complete recovery possible in such short time.

"Ah, so you've heard sensei?" asked Mio.

Ritsu wasn't all surprised like the bassist. "I guess that saves us time for explaining all of it."

"Thanks to her," said Sawako, pointing to their club's keyboardist who broke out of her thoughts and gave a weak smile. "She already filled me in about Yui's condition."

Azusa was somehow taken aback, hearing those from their homeroom teacher who happened to know youkai as well and taking them lightly as if they were not out of the ordinary beings at all. More to that, she seemed to be working covertly into that matter. "Sawako-sensei, I didn't know that you're into that kind of work."

"Of course, you wouldn't know. But I want you to stay out of it," replied the teacher with a hint of warning in her voice. "Just a small tip: Don't go out unless it's necessary tonight. I don't want to hear that one of you will be abducted or eaten by youkai in the following days. It won't do well for me."

"We understand," the black-haired bassist replied.

"But nothing happens to me even when I go to the convenience store at night," came a quick response from the drummer as if inciting a response from the teacher. "Weird."

Sawako placed her arms in front as she leaned on the table. "It's either that you're just damn lucky or they're getting picky with their targets."

"What do you mean by 'getting picky'?"

Mio giggled. "I think I get it..."

"What the hell? That's just rude!"

"Also, I have this problem I have yet to solve..."

"Huh? Is it any related to the accident?" inquired Azusa.

The teacher slumped herself on the table as if her energy was being drained. "No. I need Mugi-chan's cake and tea. Like, now. Have to bear with it for almost a week."

Tsumugi smiled playfully. "As you wish sensei. I almost forgot about it..."

The blonde keyboardist brought out a box that contained a round caramel cake that she was saving after their practice. Like any usual day in the light music club, she began to brew tea while she equally served the dessert to everyone.

"I never knew you have it in you, Sawa-chan."

"It's a pain going through all of that trouble without having a single break. Youkai and their antics are getting old fast."

"So that's you've been doing on your free time?" speculated the drummer as she rubbed her chin. "Sounds pretty suspicious to me."

"It's not like you're any better, Ritsu," Mio replied.

Sawako groaned as she brought her palm down the tabletop. "Give me some credit! Obviously, school-related works are still my priority. Now, I got almost no time to rest…"

"Then you're the one to blame for adding more of your workload," Ritsu simply said.

"Mugi-senpai, there's an extra slice left. Who's going to have it?" Azusa inquired as she noticed the remaining slice of cake.

Tsumugi's thought processes went blank for a second before she embarrassedly replied, "Oh my, I included Yui-chan in the cake's partitioning again."

"Hey, can I have that slice instead? Please?"

"Obviously, I'm the person with highest authority here!" The teacher tapped the black-haired man beside her. "Don't you agree?"

"Y-Yeah, right. What she said." He didn't want to know what would happen to him if he said otherwise.

Ritsu retorted back, "Being a teacher doesn't mean anything here!"

"Oh, but it does. Why do you think that all of you _coincidentally_ ended up in the same section this year? Helping you out in some of your problems here?" The club adviser huffed proudly and childishly. "If it weren't for me, this club won't probably survive!"

"You're bringing out those things again! Stop being a sore loser and fight fair, you old-!" She found herself unable to speak as Sawako leaned closer with a smile masking her unimaginable fury behind those diminished pupils of her brown eyes.

"I dare you to continue that sentence, Tainaka-san…"

Ritsu's forehead began to sweat uncomfortably. "Just…forget it."

"Well, I wish she's already here with us. It'll save us from this little problem," Tsumugi said as she sipped some of her tea.

Ritsu smiled. "That's silly talking again from you." Her expression quickly changed as she returned her eyes to the teacher in front of her. "Really, that cake is _mine_!"

Sawako raised an eyebrow, pretending to be oblivious. "Why? Do we need to start all over again?"

"Hello everyone! Ah~ It's good to be back!"

Everyone's attention immediately went to the door, hearing a much familiar voice that they least expect to hear at that moment. The adviser choked on a piece of her second caramel cake she just swallowed, nearly splattering it to the drummer's face in front of her. While the girls opened their eyes wide in bewilderment, save for Tsumugi who threw a doubtful look to the girl on the doorway. This particular girl had her signature pair of yellow hairclips on her short brown hair. Also, she was wearing an almost identical uniform issued by the school, save for the necktie that replaced the standard ribbon. Anyone who knew this girl would probably identify her right away but her closest friends might say otherwise.

_Hirasawa Yui wasn't supposed to be out of Eientei yet._

"Hm? What do we have here?" said Sawako after she recovered from the caramel-flavored cake.

"She's got to be Ui," whispered Azusa to the rest, "right? There's no way she's Yui."

"Yeah, yeah. I know that," replied Ritsu. "But this is great timing too. Hey, Sawa-chan, why didn't you bring her along anyway?"

"I didn't get the chance. Bringing this fellow here inside is already a pain. You get the picture?"

"Yeah. It must be harder than that. How'd you get him in here in the first place? I can't just imagine that you proudly walked your way here with him on your side."

"That would between the two of us. Why don't you ask him instead?"

"Ehh? As if he's going to answer it!"

"Hi, Ui! Waiting for us to finish?" the pigtailed girl waved a hand to the brunette who just blinked then scratched the back of her head. "Eh...more importantly, why did you change your summer uniform?"

"Ui?" asked the girl. "What do you mean?" She went for a long, dramatic gasp. "What? Don't tell me you already forgot me, Azu-nyan! How could you! After all we went through…"

"Wait. Something's really wrong here," Mio mumbled.

"It's because she's not Ui," said the homeroom teacher flatly. She took another piece of caramel cake to her mouth as her students stared at her, tending not to accept her claim. "Not my fault if you won't believe me."

"I…I can't believe that there will be a time when my friends don't recognize me at all…"

"WHAT?" the girls shouted in perfect unison. "Who is she then?"

"An impostor! You're not Yui!" shouted Ritsu, casting a murderous glare to the man as if she would behead him using her drumsticks. "I think you got something to do with that copycat!"

"I know nothing of this! You have my word of not driving any vehicle for a _very_ long time!"

"We didn't ask you about that either!" She looked back to Sawako who was cooling off her tea. "Maybe this is one of your tricks Sawa-chan!"

"What? You dare accuse me of something I'm not even aware of?"

They weren't expecting another visitor who would finally close the case. On the doorway, another girl, with her brown-hair tied to a ponytail, peeked inside the room as she beamed giddily. Azusa and the others became more bewildered.

"Oh, that's just great. Now there are two of them!"

"Now…that's the _Ui_ you're looking for," stated Sawako candidly. "Oh, Mugi-chan, tea refill please!"

"U-Ui? What the hell's happening?"

"I can't believe you girls totally fell for that one," said the teacher with a dull-looking face. "But this is a shocker." She landed her gaze to Tsumugi and asked, "I thought she won't be discharged yet?"

"I have no idea either," replied the blonde girl as she went to the countertop once again to brew more tea. "But it's better, right? She's just in time for _tea time_."


End file.
